Broken Hearts
by CuddleMeCozy
Summary: She just wanted to get them home and now her actions keep leading to unfolding events that she is quickly losing control of. M/W
1. Chapter 1

I don't own the Mighty Ducks.

AN: This was an idea that has been banging around inside my head forever but I never could figure out a beginning for it. Well I'm just starting partway through and going for it. I realize that Mallory would have handled things differently but I did it for the drama. I don't want to make this one a long story but we'll see what happens as I write. Sometimes it's not my choice and the writing just develops itself. The pace for this is going to be a little faster than usual. I am still working on my other stories for anyone who still reads them and those who have been waiting. Sorry it's taking so long. Hope I haven't lost you yet. 😊

Broken Hearts

Everything was so fucked up. Why did she let herself be pushed into this corner? Before she never would have done this. Had she really become this desperate? Apparently so. Mallory clutched her towel closer to herself at the feel of the tall drake's heat at her back.

It had been their only chance at going home, for the materials to make a gateway generator were back on Puckworld.

Algren, a duck she knew from Puckworld, had accidentally stumbled upon Earth while testing his gateway generator. Seeing the small signal briefly flash on her com, she went to investigate. It wasn't too far from her current location at the mall. Jumping on her duck-cycle and driving to the location, the red head was confused to see a duck in a large suit meant for outer space. Hearing the cycle, they turned towards her and stared. Mallory threw her kick stand down and got off her bike, approaching with caution. "Mallory?"

She froze hearing her name. "Who are you?"

The duck checked the air around himself and confirmed it was safe to breath. There hadn't been any bacteria detected that was different from Puckworld's, meaning it was safe to remove the helmet and breath the air here without fear of foreign diseases that could kill since he had no immunity to them from not growing up on this planet. Taking off the bulky headgear, the duck revealed to her wasn't one she was particularly happy to see. He had known her and her family since she was young.

"Well well. Look whose alive." He smirked, then looked around confused. "Where are we?"

"Earth. How did you get here?" She demanded to know. From her personal experience the only way anyone from Puckworld had been able to get here was by working with Dragaunus.

"With this." He showed it to her while smiling, proud of what he had achieved.

She knew instantly what it was. It was their ticket home and this all lead to her current situation. He made more with the promise that she owed him. Mallory reluctantly agreed not knowing what he was going to ask for in return but now that she thought about it, she should have realized what he wanted. Her.

Now here she was standing in a hotel bathroom wrapped in only a towel with a very angry drake standing behind her.

He punched the mirror, fracturing their image in it. Mallory jumped from the unexpected move, curling in on herself a little. She attempted to step aside but his other fist collided with the wall on the other side of her, denting it in, forcing her to lean forward. She didn't dare remove her eyes from the sink in front of her as his breath ghosted over the back of her neck, sending shivers down her spine. She would have enjoyed the feel of it had this been a different situation.

"Do you have any idea why I'm upset?"

Mallory slowly shook her head no, feeling like moving too fast would set him off.

"I'm upset because he had what I wanted to be mine."

Mallory's eyes shot up to meet his in the broken reflection, he looked so sad. Her breath left her in sobbing gasps at hearing that he had shared her feelings. "I didn't know." All this time she thought he was indifferent to her small but obvious forms of flirting. He never responded.

Wildwing didn't say anything, just stood up straight and let his bloody knuckles hang at his sides. Unable to keep eye contact with her anymore he turned away and walked to the door, stopping before leaving the bathroom. "Get dressed Mallory." He spoke without turning to look at her and then left, closing the door behind him.

When he was gone Mallory fell to her knees, still clutching the blanket around herself. "I'm sorry." She whimpered, careful to not be too loud as sobs broke passed her mouth. She closed her hands around her beak to stop the heart broken noises from escaping. Tears streamed steadily down her cheeks, dripping to the floor with small splat sounds. Wiping her face with her arm and swallowing the lump in her throat she stood up and dressed. _"What have I done?"_

Wildwing stared angrily at the unconscious duck on the floor. This guy who Mallory allowed to take advantage of her in order for them to get home. The scum bag. A good person wouldn't have held something like this over someone else's head to get them to sleep with them. The sound of the bathroom door opening caught his attention, he looked over his shoulder at Mallory who wouldn't meet his gaze. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. Being the stoic leader of a group of crime fighting ducks taught him how to hide his emotions. If this had been when they first arrived on Earth he would probably look similar to Mallory because right now his heart was breaking. "Why didn't you tell me?" He couldn't look at her right now, all he kept seeing was that bastard about to crawl on top of her. Taking his anger out on the duck's face hadn't helped diminish the heartache.

"If I told anyone the deal was off. I wasn't willing to risk our way home." She spoke softly, her voice sounded so foreign to him at that moment.

"You should have come to me no matter what. I thought you trusted me." He stood up looking around the room. Hearing this made more tears sting the back of Mallory's eyes. "Where are the other dimensional gateways generators?" He demanded.

Mallory walked to a hidden safe and showed it to her leader. "I couldn't figure a way around it." He stepped forward and scanned the safe with the mask, revealing the metal box's weak spot. Moving Mallory back behind him he stepped back and fired at the wall to the right of it, destroying the steel bolt's locking mechanism and disabling the self-defense system. Wildwing grabbed the three small generators and placed them in his side pouch. Without looking at her still, he spoke. "This is all of them?"

"Yes."

"Good. You're never to see him again."

"Yes."

Looking at the still unconscious duck, Wildwing quickly grabbed Algren by the back of the neck and lifted him up with ease off the floor. With one hand he grabbed a generator and set it for the Puckworldian desert. It would take Algren a day to walk to the city and being naked while doing it would be all the more unpleasant. Activating it, he and Mallory watched as the harsh landscape of Puckworld's red desert appeared in a giant circular gateway before them. He tossed the naked Algren through it like he was a trash bag being thrown into the garbage. The duck landed on the other side groaning as he started to come to. Wildwing closed the gateway and left the duck to his harsh walk back to the city. Once the gateway was closed, Wildwing walked to the door. "We're going back to the Pond. Now." It was an order to follow him back. She wrapped her arms around herself, feeling dirty as she followed him to the Migrator.

…..

He didn't tell the others how he got the gateway generators and they didn't ask since he was in such a terrible mood when he brought them back. Thankfully he kept what he discovered that night to himself but he also avoided her whenever he could. When they were out on missions if he could avoid being next to her, he would. Her attempts to talk to him were met with a glare, telling her he didn't want to speak. It was obvious to the others that something happened between Wildwing and Mallory that put a great divide in the friendship they use to have but they chose not to ask. What was happening between the two ducks was their business alone.

With the materials gathered from Puckworld, everyone now had their own mini generator and took trips back to their home world whenever they pleased. Mallory hardly ever used it. To her it was only a reminder of what she had done and how she had ruined any hopes of having a more intimate relationship with Wildwing, the drake she was in love with. He however apparently didn't see it as that, since he used it so frequently to go back. He was going back to Puckworld more and more now and a part of her wondered where he was going since she saw on more than one occasion that Nosedive would still be around when he left.

As the month went on Mallory would only speak to Wildwing if spoken too. Conversation was kept to a minimal. She was hurt by his treatment of her but he was hurt too, which is why he was acting the way he was. She knew this was the reason but for how long would he hold it against her? He didn't even let her explain that nothing had happened yet. He came in and knocked Algren out before anything could take place.

Another week went by and nothing changed. Slowly Mallory's sadness turned into resentment. She became stoic, using her resentment to turn off her emotions towards him and it was working until the day came that she decided that she was going to visit home. Stepping back into Puckworld would have brought her so much joy before but now it only made her feel shameful. Her boated feet crunched the soft snow covering the clean streets. In some sections of the city, it was as if the invasion didn't happen. The team kept to themselves what they did for Puckworld, they decided they didn't want the fame, they had enough of that on Earth. Instead they just wanted a little peace and quiet.

Letting her feet lead her to her destination, happy couples and families walked by holding hands and laughing without a care in the world as they went about their lives. Completely unaware that everything could go back to normal thanks to the sacrifice and hard work of one of the ducks that just walked by.

Spotting a flower shop, Mallory walked in and bought a large bouquet of Moon Flowers, her mother's favorite. Walking back out with her gift she had to quickly step back to dodge the small children skating and laughing as they chased each other down the street. The two sisters skate circles around couples and disappear into the crowd. She missed being so free and careless, missed having no worries. Missed her life from before the invasion but that was gone now. Continuing her long walk to see her family, she looked up at the large moon in the sky, a gentle smile touching her face. One of the reasons her mother loved Moon Flowers was because they only bloomed at night and when they did, the moon's light reflected off them, making them glow. Her mother called Mallory her little moon flower, the nick name was lovingly bestowed upon her because she said Mallory was the light of her life.

Seeing the moon brought her mind to the many differences between Puckworld and Earth. One being the most notable to her was the size of their moon. Their moon was closer, making it look much bigger in the sky and their sun was further, it was the reason for the colder climate. Puckworld sat closer to the outer rim of what humans called the 'Goldilocks Zone.' Not too hot and not too cold to sustain life. Another difference was that their planet was twice the size of Earth, making their gravity stronger but not too much. Coming back felt strange, her body felt a little heavy however she quickly became used to it. It was one of the reasons the ducks were naturally stronger than humans.

Lost in her thoughts she didn't realize that the streets gew empty and finally she arrived at a quiet cemetery away from the center of the city. Pushing open the gates she walked in, bouquet of flowers in hand. Navigating through the cemetery and down the softly lite paths, Mallory found the three graves she was looking for. An empty spot sat to their left, it was reserved for Mallory for when she died, that way she would sit right next to her mother. "Hi guys. It's been a while. I'm sorry I took so long to come visit." Gently she pulled out four flowers and placed them in the small pot on her father's grave and did the same for her brothers. Standing in front of her mothers, she gently kneeled and placed the rest of the bouquet in the pot.

"Mother. More than anything I miss our conversations. You always knew what I needed to hear even before I told you I had a problem. I wish I could ask for your advice now. There is a drake, I love him and I did something really stupid. I thought I was doing the right thing, making the right sacrifice. I did something shameful to get my friends back home and he found out." She sighed. "He was angry. I didn't realize he had feelings for me and now he hates me. I don't know what to do to fix it… I wish you could tell me what to do." The graves remained silent as the fresh flowers swayed softly in the cold brittle wind. "I miss you all so much.' She whispered, feeling the cold breeze gentle brush through her hair. "But I'll see you again one day. Until then, I love you." She stood up, dusted the snow off the grave stones and kissed the top of each. Somehow she had to get Wildwing to listen to her and let her explain.

Quietly making her way back down the path to the front gate, she left behind the pretty snow powdered cemetery and walked out, ready to make one last stop while she was back. Wanting to see the downtown skating rink, the one with the famous DuCaine statue in the center. She had heard from the others that it had been replaced, her family would have been happy to know it.

She used to skate there when she was a young girl with her brother, it was a spot that held many happy memories and she needed some of that right now. It was obvious that she was getting closer just from how populated the streets were becoming again. Soon the pretty duck stood in large crowds, others laughing and waiting in line for a chance to go out on the ice. Just as her teammates said the Drake DuCaine statue stood tall in the center of the rink, looking as if it had never fallen. Leaning against the banister she smiled and watched all the ducks playing games and flirting on the ice. She remembered when some of her dates brought her here. They always thought they were being creative but the truth was they all did the same thing. She didn't mind, this place was special to her. It made her proud.

Emerald eyes scanned the ducks on the ice, passing over groups until her eye caught a familiar face. Wildwing was there, holding hands with a pretty brunette duck, laughing and skating around. Taking a step back as if she had been slapped, she suddenly felt uncomfortable, awkward, and nervous. A part of her felt that she should leave, it was as if she was invading in on a private moment but at the same time wanted to know who the girl was. Using her scarf to cover her bright red hair, Mallory watched them skate around conversing and laughing. It didn't seem like much currently. Maybe it was an old friend. She hoped it was.

Suddenly a kid came charging out, not watching where he was going and before he could stop he accidently ran into the brunette duck's legs. She yelled out falling backwards but Wildwing was fast, catching her before she hit the ground and pulling her close. The kid looked like he made a quick apology and skated off, embarrassed. However, the two didn't seem to notice, they were just staring at each other. Mallory's breath hitch when the brunette made the first move and kissed him on the beak. Wildwing closed his eyes and kissed her back.

Mallory's heart dropped into her stomach, feeling sick and watching sadly as they obliviously stood in the middle of the ice rink, wrapping their arms around each other and deepening the kiss. A few minutes felt like hours to Mallory when they finally pulled away, looking to the world like they were in love. _"So much for trying to fix anything."_ She sadly thought, despite herself tears leaked from her eyes as she turned away and disappeared back into the crowds, bumping into other ducks in her desperate attempt to get away. She heard one of the ducks she bumped into yelled out as he dropped his shopping bag. He yelled something but she didn't stop to listen. Running away as fast as her feet would take her, the red head didn't know where she was going, it was just in the opposite direction of where she left the pieces of her heart.

…..

She didn't know how long she had been running but it had been a while now, her lungs were burning and so were her legs but she kept going. Tears were still streaming down her face as puffs of hot air left her beak. _"Was this how he felt when he saw me? If so, then I deserve this. No wonder he hates me. I want to hate him and it was just a kiss."_ Before she knew it, she had left the city. _"This whole time he had been going back so often to see someone else. I lost him the day he found out what I did."_ Unable to run anymore and far from the center of the city where the streets were desolate, she slowed to a walk, aimlessly moving in an unknown direction.

Lights briefly flashed by her, signally a vehicle went by. She thought nothing of it until the lights were on her again, making her turn to see who it was. A flying taxi pulled up alongside of her. "You shouldn't be walking out here this late at night. It gets dangerous here since the end of the invasion. You're headed towards a desolate area. Thieves and crooks have hideouts this way." She stopped walking to look at the driver. "Why don't you get in sweetheart. I'll take you wherever you need to go, no charge." He offered kindly.

Without a word, her cold feet numbly walked to the backdoor, opened it and got in. "So where do you want to go." There was only one place she could think of that she wanted to go, but she didn't know if it was standing anymore. She gave the kind driver her family's estate address.

…..

It was still standing. Matter of fact it looked like the war didn't happen here. There stood the beautiful McMallard estate, completely untouched by the war that had destroyed so much. "You're one of those McMallards?" The taxi driver looked back at her in awe now.

"Yeah." Mallory stared out the taxi window at her old home, lost in her thoughts.

"I didn't realize. There are only a few of the prestigious crested families left. Boy, are they gonna to be happy to hear you're alive then." Mallory didn't answer to that. She knew what that meant and she dreaded it. "Are you gonna go in?" Should she? If she did and someone was there then it would be the point of no return but she had officially lost Wildwing and the others would be moving back to Puckworld soon. They had already started planning for their return. So, what else could she do? She could run. Let everyone think that she was dead but one day someone would recognize her. When that happened, she would literally be dragged back kicking and screaming. The red head sighed, resigning herself to her reality. Her parent had taught her never to run from her responsibilities, they would be ashamed if they could hear her thoughts now.

"Yeah I'm going in. Thank you for the ride… Here take this." Handing him a forty eddo, far more then what it would have cost for the taxi ride and got out.

"Wow this is way too much!" He called back.

"Keep it." She closed the door and walked up the estate as the taxi flew off back towards the city. Entering the code to the front gate to let herself in, surprised that the code was still the same. Was it possible that Edmond was here? Walking down the lite path to the front door, Mallory knocked. After a few moments, the door was answered by none other than Edmond. His jaw dropped at the sight that greeted him.

"Ms. Mallory!"

"Edmond…" She rushed forward and wrapped her arms around the old butler, a part of her didn't believe that he would actually be there. "Oh Edmond! I'm so happy you're alive!"

…..

Mallory smiled as Edmond walked her through the estate. "This is just wonderful! I knew you were out there. I just knew you were still alive Ms. Mallory." Edmond and her mother practically raised her. On Puckworld being a part of the crested families was akin to royalty. They held great power and sway in politics, something Mallory was never very good at. She didn't like their manipulative ways but she had to be a part of it thanks to the blood that flowed through her veins. The very same blood which dubbed her as a national treasure, especially since she was the last of her family. "You are here to stay aren't you Ms. Mallory?" Edmond asked hopefully.

"Just Mallory, Edmond. You're family, you don't need to call me that. Besides, I wasn't very good with all of this fancy stuff anyway." She looked at him. "As for staying, there is still work to do back on Earth."

"Earth? Where is Earth?"

"That's a long story."

"Well why don't you tell me about it over dinner and tea. It's getting late out, I'll have to insist that you stay. This is your home after all, you should be staying here." He nodded to himself. "I took the liberty of changing your parents room and moving your things in there. Since you are the lady of this estate, it is your room now."

"Edmond. Can we keep my return to ourselves?"

Edmond looked at Mallory strangely. "Why? The other families will need to know. There is protocol to follow." He seemed disappointed with this.

"Please. I need time to figure all this out. I didn't think the house would even be here. I need to… plan." She finished.

The older duck sighed. "Very well. But you know as well as I do that they will find out. Then there will be no choice."

"I know." Mallory sighed in relief that she wasn't going to be found out yet. The red head could already feel the metaphorical heavy chains tightening. She knew that eventually this day would come just hoped that it wouldn't be so soon.

…..

Wildwing walked back to his room in the Pond. He really had enjoyed his date. Ida was pretty and charming but she was clumsy. It was kind of cute in a way, slowly it was growing on him. He smiled to himself as he thought about some of his previous dates with her and couldn't stop the smile from crossing his face. It dropped suddenly when he walked passed Mallory's room. Even now a month later he was still angry at her. Wildwing surprised himself with the level of anger that he had held on to but she hurt him like no one had ever hurt him before. His heart still broke thinking about what he saw. It was time to move on. He needed to get over this, sometimes he thought he was but then he would see her and become angry all over again.

Hating to admit it but Wildwing had to acknowledge that he was in love with her. "Am I still? Is that why it hurts so bad?" Turning away he was determined to forget about his feelings for her. Perhaps Ida could help him move on.

…..

Mallory awoke the next day expecting to be at the Pond but found herself in a strange place. Sitting up quickly her breathing increase in pace with slight panic until she really took in her surroundings. Remembering all that had happened within the span of a few hours she laid back down rubbing her forehead at the oncoming headache and heartbreak. She was home. Wildwing loved someone else. Edmond was alive but her whole family was gone. She was going to have to take over as the head of the family. She was most likely going to be forced to-. A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts.

"Ms. Mallory? Are you up?"

"Yes Edmond. And please call me Mallory."

"Of course, Mallory. I'll get your breakfast ready. Would you like it in your room or downstairs?"

"Downstairs is fine."

"Very good then." His footsteps disappear down the hall.

Sighing Mallory sat up and slide her legs over the side of the bed, putting her weight on her feet to stand and then stretching. Looking around herself, she sadly noted how lonely it felt in the large mansion. Having Edmond here was a comfort but she still felt the whole in her chest and the lump in her throat from the loss of her family. The halls were silent, no longer did she hear her mother practicing the violin or the sound of her father pacing and discussing business. No longer would her brother tease her and yell that he was going to eat her breakfast if she didn't get moving. The estate seemed so much smaller then and so much warmer.

Getting dressed then silently padding down the halls to the kitchen, Mallory found her food ready and waiting for her. Edmond had made her favorite. "Thanks Edmond."

He smiled a little sadly back at her from the sink, knowing that she was feeling the loss of her family more than ever now that she was here alone for the first time without them. She had not been back since the invasion started. "Of course, Mallory." He wanted to do anything to bring her some small form of comfort. He could imagine that coming back held a sense of foreboding for her. For soon she would be surrounded by wolves again and they were all going to want a piece of the very last McMallard. The last of the DuCaine blood line.

…..


	2. Chapter 2

I don't own the mighty ducks.

Tanya sat drinking her morning coffee with a newspaper in hand. Her eyes scanned the grey paper for updates on what was going on in the world. She sighed contently, the ability to go back and forth between dimensions was now at their fingertips and she couldn't be happier about it. Everyone was happy about it. All except Mallory it seemed. She thought she knew why. Mallory's whole family had died in the invasion since they were all in the military. She never confirmed it but Tanya had her suspicions that Mallory might be one of the crested however she didn't act like it at all and McMallard was a common name.

Now that she thought about it, she hadn't seen Mallory since yesterday in the early afternoon. The militaristic duck was usually up by now and sitting at the table with her. Where was Mallory? "Maybe she's not feeling well." She murmured to herself.

"Who's not feeling well?" Duke asked from behind her, surprising Tanya and making her jump slightly. A small drop of coffee fell on her sleeve, making her glare at it then at the smirking drake.

"Duke! Pl-please stop doing that."

"Sorry. I forget that I can be so quiet sometimes. It's jus' habit sweetheart." He took the seat across from her. "So? Who's not feeling well?"

"Mallory, I think. I haven't seen her for a while."

"Oh she's not sick. She left, went to Puckworld for the first time." Duke answered.

Tanya seemed a little startled by this. "You're sure?"

"Yeah. I saw her leave. Didn't wanna bother her, she seemed lost in her own world, ya know?" He leaned back in his chair, not thinking much of it.

Tanya on the other hand gnawed on the lip of her lower beak. "She hasn't returned yet."

"Maybe Mal Mal is just visiting family. After all everyone has spent more than a couple days there. It's about time she did too."

Tanya didn't comment on that. Mallory had been specific about not wanting anyone to know about her family being gone. Sighing the blonde went back to reading her paper. There was no reason for Mallory to be gone so long. _"If she isn't back by tomorrow. I'm going after her."_

…..

After breakfast, Mallory sat with Edmond in her father's home office. The large dark wood furniture was intricately carved, the elegance of everything in the home showed the family's status in society. Rich reds decorated the rooms within taste. It was all so familiar yet it didn't quiet feel like home anymore.

Edmond mentally prepared himself for this talk, he cleared his throat before starting. "I know it must be difficult being back without them." He started, feeling a little melancholy at mentioning the now deceased family, save for one. Mallory silently listened, knowing being here and waiting must have been hard for Edmond. "But I want you to remember that I am here for you Mallory. We may not be related but I still consider you to be family."

"You helped raise me Edmond. You've always been there for me throughout my life. You've always been family to me, to all of us. With you here I didn't lose everyone." She smiled sadly at him.

Edmond felt a lump form in his throat but swallowed it down, nodding he stood up and straightened his shirt. "Very good." He managed with his voice breaking only a little. Clearing his throat he spoke again, this time without difficultly. "Perhaps a stroll through the market is in order. The shops and flowers are very beautiful around this time of year. I think getting some sun might be good for you." He didn't want her sitting in this large empty house by herself, thinking about her family and what awaited her when she revealed herself.

"Of what little sun we get here, yeah I guess that would be good." Edmond raised an eyebrow at that. This area of Puckworld was known for its sunny weather. Seeing his confusion Mallory went on. "It never snows in Anahiem."

"Ah. The city you've been living in on this planet called Earth." The older duck recalled some of their earlier conversations from dinner the night before.

"Yeah." Mallory smiled. Edmond may have been older now but he still had a mind like a steel trap. "Should I take dad's old ride?"

"You have your own vehicle that's been waiting for you." He smiled, seeing Mallory's eyes light up made him chuckle.

"You mean…?"

"Your fathers bike. It's all fixed." He was glad he could still make her smile. It took him forever to fix that thing but now that it was, the bike drove like a streamline butterfly. It was considered a collectable these days and many tried to buy it but he refused to sell it. At the time Mallory was still missing and no trace of her had been found. Everyone wanted to announce her as died but he refused to believe it. Until solid proof showed that she was dead, he would continue to live under the notion that she would come back. Edmond smiled proudly, his faith in her strength proved right. Walking to the large garage he led her to where the bike was being neatly kept. Mallory's jaw dropped seeing it, the thing looked brand new.

"Wow! Edmond! You did all this?"

"Yes, and she drives perfectly." He held out the keys and placed them in her hand. "Your father would have wanted you to have it."

Her fingers curled around the jagged metal keys in a gentle fist. "Thank you." She could do little but stare at her closed fist, holding something that had been so important to her father.

"I'll leave you to it then." He walked back into the house while Mallory stood staring at the beautiful machine, with its shiny coat and slick curves the bike was perfection on wheels.

In the now empty garage Mallory nodded to herself, turning her eyes back to the bike. "Let's see what you can do."

…..

The trip into the metropolis took only ten minutes, a new record time. This thing was fast! Driving in, the bike attracted attention, ducks would stop to watch it go by. She couldn't help but smirk, her father had good taste when it came to his vehicles. Parking along a street next to the market, Mallory dismounted and removed her helmet, locking it in the back compartment so that it couldn't be stolen. Walking into the market she was surprised at the number of flowers and colorful foods that were out, not to mention how crowded it was. She expected the market wouldn't be as diverse since the attack but if anything, it was more! Another form of resilience. It showed that no matter what kind of destruction the Saurians did, ducks would always fight back and rebuild better than ever.

Pulling her cloak up to cover her hair and hide some of her face, she walked along the stalls of the busy market. It was common for ducks to wear cloaks, so it helped her blend in to the crowd without seeming suspicious. She didn't need another Crested finding out she was back sooner than planned. Ducks raced around grabbing fruits and meats of all kinds. She forgot how much she missed doing this kind of thing.

The day was lovely and her heart hurt a little less now. Wandering and checking the different vendors, Mallory was lost in pleasant contemplation until she heard his voice. "I did have a great time but I shouldn't have stayed the night, I've got to get back to my team." Her nerves prickled all over her body in a moment of panic but thankfully she already had her cloak in place.

"Shouldn't have stayed the night? Not sure what to think of that." A feminine voice spoke in answer with a teasing note. Mallory pulled her cloak tighter, making sure her hair was covered, it was her biggest giveaway, not many ducks had her hair color. Turning her back to her approaching captain and his new girlfriend, she listened in on their conversation. "One would think you hadn't enjoyed last night. Never met a man who preferred work over sex." Mallory froze stiff as a board hearing that, her stomach dropped and her heart ached. An array of colorful emotions passed through her, anger, jealously, disbelief, and heartbreak. Horrible hollowness clawed at her chest. Knowing he was dating someone else hurt but knowing he was sleeping with her was almost unbearable. The red head's eyes moistened but she refused to let tears fall this time.

"Oh! No I did. I just meant I have responsibilities and shouldn't shrug them off. That's all."

"I suppose I can understand that." She wrapped an arm around his and leaned into his side. "Well what do you say we grab something to eat and then you can head back."

Wildwing laughed, she wouldn't take no for an answer. "All right."

"Oh look at this stall." The brunette just happened to point at the stall Mallory was pretending to be looking at. Cursing to herself as they moved closer, she went to make a quick getaway. Only for a group of ducks to block her path with their eagerness to get to the sales. She cursed again, hearing the two were right behind her. They were so close Mallory could smell the bitches perfume. "If he sees me here today and like this I might die of embarrassment." It would almost feel like she was spying even though she wasn't. Bringing a hand up to quickly wipe at her eyes and clear her blurred vision, she attempted to get through the thick crowd ahead of her. Then the worse thing happened, the dumb girl with Wildwing thought she worked there. Seriously?

"Hey! Excuse me but how much is this?" She went to grab Mallory's shoulder. Wildwing could tell that the woman obviously didn't work in the market, not with that expensive cloak adorning her shoulders. He watched the tension in the elegantly cloaked woman's shoulders grow as his girlfriend reached for her. Even with her back turned he could tell that she knew Ida was reaching for her and it upset her. He went to intervene but the actual shop owner did it for him.

"I can tell you that miss!" A skinny older drake smiled at Ida holding out his hand for the object she was holding. Both Ida and Wildwing turned to the drake, giving Mallory the chance she needed to disappear into the crowd now that her path was no longer blocked.

Navigating through the heavily populated market, she gained a lot of ground away from Wildwing and his girlfriend. Once far enough away, her pace lessened and she slowed to a walk. Heading towards the exit of the market, Mallory was almost out when someone grabbed her arm bringing her to a sudden halt. She was ready to twist the persons hand and throw them over her shoulder when they spoke, confusing and stalling her.

"Hey I know you! You knock my bag out of my hand the other night."

She looked at him from the side of her eye. "What?"

"Yeah! You barreled through without any regard for others around you." The duck was fairly handsome, his blue eyes and brown hair with tan feather made for an attractive contrast. He looked like he should be on a beach back on Earth.

"I did?" She tried to remember running away from the ice rink but in her state she hadn't been focused on anything other than running. She vaguely remembered someone yelling at her, perhaps this was him. "I didn't realize." She pushed the cloak back so he could see her face. He seemed stunned for a moment.

"Mallory? Mallory McMallard!" He asked loudly, making Mallory cringe. She looked around nervously, hoping Wildwing hadn't heard that. Seeing that he wasn't around and nobody was really paying attention, she relaxed.

"Do I know you?"

"Yeah! We went to college together. FSU? Feather Stone University."

Mallory squinted her eyes at him, the memory of a guy sitting two rows behind her, he always sat in the same spot. "I think I do remember you now. Ben?"

"Yeah! Ben Whistling." He smiled, completely forgetting why he had stopped her in the first place.

"Well Ben. Was anything in the bag broken that I can give you money to replace?" She cut to the chase, wanting to leave the market as quick as possible. It wasn't every day that the guy you loved was sleeping with someone.

"Oh no. Forget I mentioned it. I didn't realize it was you." He blushed a little, realizing that a moment ago he had been ready to give her a good tongue lashing for rude behavior.

"Right." Mallory wasn't sure what else to say to him.

"So, are you in a hurry to get somewhere? Maybe we could grab lunch sometime?" He stuck his hands in his pockets, trying to look casual. "You know… maybe… hangout?" Ben mentally scolded himself on his lack of smoothness.

Not wanting to deal with this now Mallory just agreed. "Sure, have a contact number?"

Ben fumbled for a second with his wallet and pulled out a card. "This is my private number. Give me a call sometime soon. It'll be nice to catch up." He waited as she put his number away. "Uh so, can I have yours?"

"I don't have a card or anything but if you have a pen?" She tried to remain polite.

"Oh! Here." He pulled out another card and gave her a pen he had on himself. Mallory wrote the house number on the card and gave it back to him. "Just ask for me."

"I'll do that." He smiled, tucking the card safely away.

"Alright. See you around Ben." She nodded and walked back to her bike, trying to get her mind off Wildwing and his new girlfriend.

"See ya." Ben called after her as he watched her disappear around the corner, a slight smile tilting his bill as he continued his walk through the market.

Out from another stall a tall white feathered drake walked to the spot the two had been. Hearing Mallory's name had been a shock. She was here? Seeing Mallory's footsteps in the snow, he quickly followed them, wanting to catch up with her before she got away. Tracking them back to where her bike was parked he arrived just in time to see her cloaked form on a bike that she had already started up. It roared loudly as she took off down the street. "Damnit!" He muttered seeing that he just missed her. "Well. Nothing to worry about. I know where you live." He smirked, looking at his expensive watch to see that it was just passed ten in the morning. "Plenty of time to make myself presentable to her." Walking back to where he left his friend, the smug duck was feeling practically lucky.

Rounding the corner, he found his friend waiting for him. "Abel where did you go?" He heard his friend call out to him.

"You know that problem I was talking about this morning?" Walking with his hands behind his back in typical military form only made the duck all the more royal looking.

Jared tilted his head at Abel in curiosity. "Yeah?"

"Well, I just found the solution." His aqua colored eyes shined smugly, confusing his friend even more.

"What?"

…..

Meanwhile, back at the Pond, Tanya was searching.

Tanya poked her head into the rec room where Nosedive sat eating pizza. "Hey, uh Nosedive h-have you seen Mallory?"

"No. Why?" He stuffed more in his face while watching cartoons.

"She's been missing for 48 hours now."

"Wait? What? Why didn't you tell bro? Do you think she's been kidnapped?"

"No she left for Puckworld but it's been too long."

"What? Ah jeeze Tanya! Give me a heart attack why don't you." He leaned back into the couch, completely unconcerned now.

"Nosedive she has no reason to stay as long as she has. So it is w-worrisome."

"I don't know. Tell bro. See what he says."

Tanya sighed in annoyance. "I would if he was around!" She crossed her arms looking off to the side with a sigh. "He didn't come back last night either."

"I don't know. Maybe he's stayed at Ida's place last night. I'm sure he'll be back soon." The teen took a big sip of coke, draining it until he couldn't get any more liquid and in turn giving himself a brain freeze. "Ouch! OuchOuchOuch!" He grabbed his temples holding them as if it would help.

Tanya just rolled her eyes behind her purple glasses, wanting to say something about him being stupid but ignored it in favor of the interesting fact the dumb blond just dropped. "Whose Ida?"

"His new girlfriend."

Tanya raised an eyebrow at that, she didn't realize her leader had been seeing anyone. Not that it was any of her business but she wondered if Mallory knew? Did this have something to do with her disappearance? "I'm not waiting around. I'm gonna find her. Let the others know I've gone to Puckworld."

"Okay. I think your overreacting but will do." He waved not taking his eyes off the television screen.

Tanya ran back to her room, grabbing the items she would need for her trip to Puckworld. Mallory still hadn't come back and it seemed like she was the only one who gave a damn. She was going to find her friend, Mallory would do the same for her.

…..


	3. Chapter 3

I don't own the Mighty Ducks.

Generally, she was very against violence and technology. Smacking or punching equipment didn't fix anything but in this case, she was ready to bash this damn thing on the ground! "Oh come on!" The blond tech gripped the tracking devise, almost crushing it in her hands. Since arriving the stupid thing wouldn't even turn on and no, it wasn't the battery. She groaned, looking up at the sky wondering how she was going to find Mallory. To make it worse Mallory wasn't answering her com! Which made her even more worried! "Okay. I can either go back and fix this at the lab in the Pond or find Mallory the uh old-fashioned way and hope that it's not that difficult."

Making up her mind she walked to a public library where they kept updated records on lost and deceased ducks from the invasion. Lists of families and individuals telling where they were currently or where they were buried. This was put together so families could be reunited or finally find out what happened to their loved ones. It held recorders of previous addresses in case some went back to their old homes, that is if the homes were still standing. This system had helped thousands reunite and hopefully it would help Tanya find Mallory.

Walking to the library hadn't taken long, the snow-covered city had excellent public transportation and she only had to hop on the hover metro to the central business district. Once in the library, pulling up the records on McMallard had been easy, ruling out the deceased from the missing cut down her search to only twenty families. Tanya sighed and cracked her fingers. Thanks to her computer skills, going through this list wouldn't take nearly as long as it would for most. Typing away and going through the different folders she scanned quickly, searching for information that fit Mallory's small description of her family. Out of the twenty, only three fit the description and one of them happened to be a crested family. Going with her gut Tanya began investigating the Crested McMallard family but oddly enough no pictures or addresses were provided, whereas every other family's files had both. _"That's odd."_ Looking around herself to see if anyone was watching, the brilliant blond pulled a small device from her omitool and attached it to the computer. Pulling up government accounts on its crested families she hacked into the system and searched for more information on the Crested McMallard family. A little information was provided. General Troy McMallard led the attack on the Saurian invasion and died defending thousands in the military bases, his wife Helena had been with him. The brother died in war and the daughter was MIA. That sounded about right!

Clicking on the file with information on the children Tanya was surprised to find that it was classified even to low level employees in the government. Hacking in even deeper Tanya finally found what she was looking for. There was her name, Mallory McMallard was classified as missing in action and her brother, Thomas was deceased, family pictures of the siblings proved that Tanya's theory about Mallory being one of the crested was correct! Her eyes hovered over another folder called 'Ancestry'. Her curious nature got the best of her and like any hacker, she had to know more. Clicking on it opened a file showing Mallory's family tree and the name that she came across made her jaw drop. "Holy shit!"

…..

After leaving the market, Mallory had driven around aimlessly for hours, trying to take her mind off everything. Seeing the time made her release how long she had been out and how cold she was. Directing the bike back to her home, the red head finally saw that she had never gotten anything from the market. "Oh well. Good excuse to get out of the house later."

Driving up the long driveway and into her garage, she parked and dismounted the bike. Tossing her heavy cloak and keys onto the rack in the hallway that led to the main entryway, she sighed as her body warmed up from just being back in the house. The warmth of the family estate did nothing to warm her heart though, it remained heavy, she just wanted to go and sleep the rest of the day away.

"Mallory." Edmond came to greet her with a smile but saw the look on her face and instantly knew something was wrong. "Mallory what is it?"

"Nothing. I just need to rest." She began walking up the stairs when Edmond spoke again.

"It seems you missed a call. I felt it would have been inappropriate for me to answer your com."

Her head snapped to him, hearing that someone had called her from her com. It would have to come from someone on her team that was here and the only one that she knew was here was Wildwing. Did he see her at the market? "Thank you, Edmond. I'll take care of it." Walking quickly to her room she went right to the dresser that held her com to see it flashing yellow, indicating there was a message.

Nervously opening it, she went to her messages and was surprise to find it had been from Tanya about three hours ago! Listening to the message Tanya left she sighed. Her friend had been worried and came looking for her, Mallory smiled to herself. Tanya was a great friend to be so worried for her, she was glad that she had been able to meet the blond tech. Knowing that Tanya had come all this way for her showed that she wasn't as alone as she thought. Opening her com Mallory went to call Tanya back but the sound of arguing could be heard downstairs. Closing it Mallory rushed to see what was going on. It sounded like Edmond was being attacked! Grabbing her gun, she ran to the main entrance with her gun at the ready only to see Edmond glaring at a rude drake that had let himself in with his personal guard. He was wearing a very extravagant black cloak that covered his face and beside him another cloaked duck stood but much less decorated. "Who do you think you are barging in here!" Mallory yelled from the top of the stairs aiming her gun at the drake that forced his way into her home. The guards beside him aimed their guns back at Mallory making Edmond gasp and the threaten drake only grinned boyishly.

"Mallory, I'm surprised you don't recognize me." The mysterious drake spook in a deep voice. Bringing his hand up and pulling back his hood to reveal a handsome white feathered duck with aqua colored eyes. The boyish grin never leaving his face.

Narrowing her eyes at him, it took her a second to recognize him. "Abel Lovell and I'm guessing the other duck beside you would be Reynard Kyngenston." Reynard always followed Abel around ever since they were children, always had the same serious look on his face. Reynard pulled his cloak back and nodded to Mallory, looking significantly less cheerful then Abel. His brown feathers were a few shades lighter than his hair and his eyes were a light blue.

"Did you honestly think you could hide?" Abel crossed his arms, his grin getting bigger and bigger.

"I just found my way back." She put her gun away and in turn so did Abel's body guards. Edmond breathed a sigh of relief. "Now if you don't mind, I was just about to make a call before you let yourself in. Please leave."

"But why? We have so much to discuss you and I. Mainly business. Did you think you could push off your duties?" He uncrossed his arms and beckoned her to come down. "Please. Let's discuss this in the drawing room." Abel took off his cloak and tossed it at Edmond, who caught it in surprise as Abel walked passed him.

"Now listen here young man!" Edmond growled. "Ms. McMallard asked you to leave. We will contact you when we are ready to move ahead with crested business! Please see yourself out!"

"Edmond, last time I checked your last name was ' _Altee'_ not ' _McMallard_.' Besides, the high court chairman is already on his way here." Abel continued into the drawing room, Reynard followed without taking off his cloak. The guards closed the entry way door and stood guard in front of it.

"How dare he!" Edmond fumed, realizing what this was. Abel was forcing Mallory's hand and holding her prisoner with the established rules. Mallory saw this as well and silently cursed him. Abel had always been pushy when it came to getting his way but this was a new level. Walking down the stairs Mallory stomped into the drawing room, clenching her fists to keep herself from lashing out.

Walking into the drawing room she found Abel making himself comfortable on one of the large couches in front of the fireplace. "I'll take some tea while I'm waiting." Abel had his eyes closed as he relaxed on the couch while Reynard stared out the large window at the snow fall.

"Don't have any." Mallory growled.

Finally opening his eyes, he narrowed them in displeasure at Mallory. "Not a very pleasant hostess, are you?"

"Not for you." Her response was quick. Reynard turned his head slightly so that he could look over his shoulder at Mallory as she rudely rebuffed Abel's request. His blue eyes never showing emotion.

"You should be mindful of your manners. Especially when Eadric gets here."

"Mallory." Edmond walked in looking worried. Everyone in the room turned to look at him. "Honorable Crested Eadric Warde is here." Warde was one of the oldest of the Crested families, even before DuCaine became Crested. An older duck walked in behind Edmond with his hands behind his back.

Abel stood to show respect to the oldest crested name. "Honorable Eadric. I'm glad you could make it." Abel gave a small bow.

"I had to see for myself that the last DuCaine was still alive." The wizened old duck, walked up to both Mallory and Abel. "I am glad to see you well Ms. McMallard."

"Thank you, sir." Mallory stood tall in typical military form.

"Please everyone sit." Eadric nodded to the couches and took a seat, Mallory sat across from him on the opposite couch and Abel took a seat next to Mallory, much to her distaste. "Besides at my age, I can't seem to stay on my feet for too long." He leaned back his eyes shifting back and forth between the two. "So, this is a surprise." Crossing his arms, he closed his eyes, his brows wrinkling in displeasure. "You can imagine my surprise when I had to hear that you were alive from Abel." Abel leaned back and crossed one leg over the other, brushing against Mallory's thigh while his one arm went behind her on the couch and the other rested in his lap.

Mallory scooted a little further from him which only made Abel smile. "Eadric, I just got back. My family is gone. I need time to morn." She explained.

"None of us have had the luxury to morn Mallory." Reynard spoke up from across the room surprising them all.

Mallory raised an eyebrow at that. _"Who did he lose?"_

"He's right." Abel jumped in. "We've had to keep going for the good of the people. They depend on our leadership in times of struggle."

Eadric only nodded, opening his eyes to look at Mallory. "We have all lost and suffered but we didn't shrug off our responsibilities… _You_ have responsibilities."

"And what would that be exactly?" Mallory snapped, taking Eadric by surprise. Edmond shook his head no at Mallory who took a breath and calmed herself. Eadric watched Mallory disapprovingly as Abel pretended to be frustrated. "Apologies. What I mean to say is; what are these responsibilities that I couldn't wait a week to come talk to you?"

"Children, Mallory." Abel said, staring at her intently, a slight smile tilting his beak.

Mallory's eyes widened. "What?"

"He's right. Not only are we still trying to rebuild Puckworld but we need to ensure that the crested family lines continue on." Eadric nodded. "The world isn't as safe as we are making it seem. The hawks on the other side of the world took huge losses on their resources but our populations and military took a bigger hit. If they figure it out that we have been weaken, they will try to take advantage of our position. Now it is more important than ever that we are united and strong. Otherwise we risk war over resources." Mallory didn't know what to say, she hadn't realized all of this was happening but then she hadn't been in the loop. "So, as you can see, we don't have time to morn our loved ones because we are on the verge of another war."

Mallory bowed her head. "I see."

"Disgusting hawks." Abel sneered. "We can always trust them to make things worse."

Eadric didn't say anything, if he found the statement offensive then he kept it to himself. Mallory on the other hand shot a glare at Abel. "If that's the case then there is a good chance their people are suffering as much or more than ours. Have they said anything that would indicate they were willing to go to war?"

Eadric nodded. "Indeed. The new leadership is young and abrasive."

"Dragaunus had most of their crested families executed. Basically, only one survived. The responsibility of the nation rests on one hawk's shoulders. His name is Raulin Brocas and beside him is his sister Joscelyn who helps govern. They've basically become a monarchy." Abel described as if they were incompetent.

"If that's true then they must be desperate." Mallory went to explain her thoughts but Abel interrupted again.

"Exactly! We should take advantage before they try anything. We need to establish ourselves before we even consider formal talks."

"No!" Mallory scolded. "If they are desperate and their people are suffering then as Puckworldians we have a responsibility to help them! There doesn't have to be any threats. We can trade and establish a peaceful agreement that benefits both."

"And what would that be?" Eadric folded his hands in his lap.

"Trade resources for Military."

Abel placed his fingers to his forehead and shook his head, a chuckle escaping him at her silly idea. "If we make that deal they will know that we are weak and take advantage anyway. We are basically laying all our cards on the table hoping they will do the same. It's a terrible idea."

"I have to agree with Abel on this Mallory."

"Look let's open up talks. We can even offer crested members to help advice on running a nation. He must be feeling the stress of baring this all on his own. If he is young as you say he is then I have no doubt he doesn't want to be in the position that he is in. We have been in a tense peace with them for many years now! The old council is gone, it could be a good time to strength bonds with a younger generation. If we take advantage of them now it's only going to cause resentment down the road and possibly more war. Instead of making an enemy we could be making an alley and friend." Mallory watched Eadric's face for an answer. Abel was surprisingly quiet. Glancing at Edmond she saw a proud shine in his eyes.

Eadric smiled at Mallory. "I think your right Mallory but we're going to have to be careful how we do this. We must make it seem like we are extending an olive branch while remaining strong. Your father and mother would be very proud of you." Mallory nodded, swallowing down the lump forming in her throat. "Now to the main reason I was called here…"

Mallory tensed when she saw Abel smirk out of the side of her eye. "All the other crested family members have already been married off and are breeding, all but you and Abel." She knew this was coming but didn't think she would have to worry about Abel.

"Did nobody want you Abel?" Mallory glared at him.

"Quite the contrary. I didn't want any of them." He leaned back, looking far too smug. Mallory glanced at Eadric who nodded, letting Mallory know his statement was true.

"Abel has been unwilling to marry and it's been quite a problem trying to figure out a solution for him but when he heard you were back he came right to me and let me know that you were the perfect mate for him."

"I'll bet." Mallory looked down, hiding her eyes with her hair and grinding her teeth. The Lovell's weren't the most powerful or wealthy of the crested families, matter of fact they were social climbers. It was all they cared about and being mated to a DuCaine descendent would elevate his status in society to a whole new level of luxury. She could already see the wicked wheels turning in his head. Looking up at Eadric, she saw pity in his eyes but she knew from his position there was nothing he could do about this. In times of war the rules were clear, crested could only be mated to crested and keeping the crested bloodline going came first _. "I should have never come back."_

"I'm afraid my age and the times are catching up with me. I'm sorry but both of you will have to excuse me, I must go. I will leave you two to discuss the details." Eadric politely bowed and left the two to talk, Edmond saw him out.

Mallory glared at Abel who now stood over her. "So now you see." Seeing her glared he scuffed. "Don't blame this on me. Your family put you in this position when they choose to go out there and fight as opposed to taking cover like all the other crested families. They knew how important their blood was and yet they went out to their deaths anyway."

"They did their duty! I am proud of my family! We are DuCaines! When the Saurians comes you can bet your ass we will be on the front lines to fight them, like always!" Edmond walked back in to see the clear offense on Mallory's face, he stood back not sure whether he needed to step in. Reynard finally turned around to watch what would happen.

"You're a woman. You shouldn't be fighting. You should be on your back, spreading your legs for me."

No one had time to react to the comment before Mallory had punch the duck across the jaw, sending him sprawling to the floor. Edmond stepped forward, placing a hand on Mallory's shoulder, stopping her from doing anything else. Though Abel's comment was completely out of line so was Mallory hitting him, a proper young woman didn't punch others not matter what they said to her. As the last blood relative to the DuCaine family, she had to be political and proper, even when others were not. It was one of the burdens of the privilege she was born to. This was something she had always struggled with and as such her parents tried to keep her out of the lime light as much as possible, now that time and experience away from these situations was hurting her standing. Edmond thanked his lucky stars that this conversation had been held in a private.

"Mallory your parents would be ashamed." Edmond whispered. "They taught you better."

She breathed heavily through her nostrils, trying to control her temper. Edmond was right, she could get into a lot of trouble for hitting Abel but dammit if that hadn't felt good.

Abel wiped the blood off the side of his beak from where she hit him and laughed. Standing up his dusted himself off. "When we're married and I finally get you in bed, I'm going make you regret that." He walked passed her tense form and left the room. Reynard followed him, glancing at Mallory once as he went by.

Edmond let out a breath of relief now that Abel was gone. "Well, that could have gone better."

"I'm sorry Edmond." Mallory didn't turn around to face him.

Edmond sighed. "You have nothing to apologize for. He should be the one doing that and it _was_ entertaining to see him go down like that however… You are a McMallard and the last DuCaine. There is much that is expected of you and behaving like that in public would dishonor your name."

"I don't give a shit about my name." She crossed her arms in what looked like defiance but was really hugging herself for comfort.

"It's also you parents name Mallory… and your brother's name. Their gone and they would expect you to up hold it. You represent them too."

"I hate that duck and the way he talks about me like I'm a piece of flesh. I hate the way he looks at me."

"I do too and if we want to avoid him being your future husband we need to be very careful with how we handle everything."

"You think there is a way around it."

"There may be..."

Mallory was about to ask something else when there was a knock at the door. Edmond raised an eyebrow but went and answered it. Mallory followed him, hiding behind the door so that she couldn't be seen, wanting to know who it was and if they were going to cause any trouble. Opening the door Edmond answered politely. "May I help you?"

"Uh-uh yeah. Is this M-Mallory McMallard's residence?"

Knowing that voice anywhere Mallory came out from behind the door. "Tanya?"

"Mallory!" The blond duck rushed forward, wrapping her arms around the petite red head. Edmond stood back not sure who she was but obviously they knew each other. "I was so worried when you didn't, uh ya know, come back!"

"I'm sorry. I wasn't expecting my home to still be standing and then so much is happening. I kind got sucked in."

"Yeah I guess. I mean you are one of the crested families." Tanya laughed awkwardly, not sure if she should mention that she knew Mallory was a DuCaine.

"I should have told you about it a long time ago."

Tanya waved her off. "No. I don't care! It wouldn't have changed anything."

"Excuse me." Edmond politely interrupted so that both females looked at him. "But I might I suggest that you invited your friend in from the cold."

"Oh right. Tanya, come on in. Make yourself at home." She pulled Tanya away from the door who looked around and whistled. Edmond closed and locked the large door behind them. "Tanya I want you to meet Edmond Altee. He practically raised me. Edmond this is Tanya Vanderflock, she was instrumental in taking out Dragaunus back on Earth."

"Oh. A true pleasure then." Edmond shook her hand.

"Pleasures a-all mine."

"I'm sure you'll both want to chat. I'll make some tea." Edmond excused himself.

When he was gone the blond turned to the red head. "So what's it like being crested?"

Mallory sighed. "Blows."

Three teas and some snacks later, Mallory had informed Tanya of everything that was happening with the council and Abel. "He sounds horrible."

"Yeah."

"There has g-got to be a way around it."

"Edmond thinks so too but I'm not sure how much he can help me." Mallory sipped the last of her tea while Tanya glared out the window.

"Maybe the guys could help?" Mallory cringed hearing this.

"Honestly I don't want any of them to know about it."

Tanya was confused by that. "Why?"

"The only one who could really help me with this would be you. Besides I don't want them involved. It's none of their business."

Tanya placed down her tea cup, looking sadly at Mallory. "Don't want _them_ involved or don't want _him_ involved." Mallory's head snapped in her direction, hurt reflecting in her eyes for a moment. "Yeah I heard about his new g-girlfriend." Looking away from Tanya, to hide what she was feeling she thought about trying to play it off as something she didn't care about but Tanya knew her too well.

"He won't help me."

"Yes, he would! Mallory, if you think Wildwing would abandon you in your time of need, your wrong."

"Maybe not but he is still angry at me."

"For what?"

She sighed checking to make sure Edmond wasn't around to hear what she was about to tell her best friend. Taking a seat next to Tanya she quietly told her everything that happened.

Tanya listened to Mallory's story, every once in a while, narrowing her eyes. "I see." The blond sighed, leaning back, looking both frustrated and determined. "We have to talk to him."

"No."

"Mallory come on! Think about what you're doing to yourself! Are you really gonna let that creep have his way with you over asking someone who used to be your friend for help?"

"There is nothing he can do to help me. There's no point." Mallory looked at the floor as if it had offended her.

"Maybe he'll reconsider his relationship with his girlfriend if he knew."

"No! We are never going to tell him!" Mallory crossed her arms, letting Tanya know her decision was final. "Besides I'm a crested, I can never be with him now."

" _We'll this is gonna make this a lot harder."_ Tanya thought to herself and sighed.

"Hey Tanya? I would like it if you stayed with me, I know you have other things you need to be doing and we have a game coming up back on Earth but I could use a friend right now."

"Oh! Uh y-yeah sure. There is nothing too important going on right now back at the Pond. I'll just need to the let the guys know that I'm staying with you."

"Can you give them as little information as possible?"

"Uh yeah sure." Tanya nodded, grabbing her dimensional gateway, she opened a portal to the Pond. "I'll tell Duke that I'm gonna be staying with you for a couple of days." Tanya disappeared through the portal while Mallory waited. A few tense minutes later Tanya walked back through and closed the portal. "It's done."

…..


	4. Chapter 4

I don't own the Mighty Ducks.

It had been a day since he came back from Puckworld and in that time, he kept busy around the Pond but what had been occupying his mind the most was Mallory's disappearance, much to his frustration. When he came back his brother had been the first one to greet him, asking him if he had run into Mallory or Tanya while he was there. Turns out she had left for a few days. To top it off, Tanya was gone now. Apparently, she had gone back to Puckworld too!

Figuring he would give it a day, Wildwing waited patiently. When a day had come and gone and still both were not back yet, he grew restless. He figured he check with Duke and see if he knew something. Opening his com, he called the ex-thief, who answered almost immediately. "Yo."

"Duke, have you seen either Mallory or Tanya?"

"Mal Mal is back on Puckworld, so is Tanya."

"Yeah I heard but did they leave something more specific? Nosedive had no idea where they were going."

"Nope."

The team leader sighed. "They can't be disappearing when we have games coming up."

"I don' know." Duke raised an eyebrow at him. He knew why Mallory didn't tell Wildwing. At every turn when she spoke to him, it had been met with disinterest or a glare. She probably grew tired of trying.

"I was wondering when Mal was gonna go see her family. Everyone else has gone back to see theirs more frequently, Mallory waited a long time to see hers." Duke seemed to be off in his own thoughts about it. "Do you think she avoided it because something bad happened?"

"I hope not." He didn't like the idea of her being out there alone. Despite his anger at her, he still cared.

"Me too."

"Alright. Let me know if you see one of them return."

"Will do. Duke out." Duke's image went black on Wildwing's screen.

He sighed. "If they're not back in a day, I'm going to go get them. Wherever they are…"

…..

Around that time back in Puckworld, found Mallory and Tanya in Eadric's private office at his opulent family estate.

Tanya sat quietly, sinking into one of the plushy office chairs, watching as Mallory paced back and forth in front of Eadric's desk. They had tried to come up with every possible way to get out of this but all arguments were quickly dismissed when Eadric pointed out what the arguments flaw was. Frustrated and tired the two had searched relentlessly for a solution, only to come up empty handed.

"You mean that my choice is really no choice?"

"I'm afraid so Mallory." Eadric sighed, rubbing a hand over his face, looking tired.

"How come Abel was able to avoid mating for so long and why would he?" She huffed, finally standing still.

"The crested houses were of equal level or below his. There was nothing for him to gain and he outright refused." Eadric sighed, realizing how unfair this was. If there was a way around this he would have done it to help Mallory but there was nothing. He personally didn't like Abel either, the kid was always selfish, even when he was little and his mother was mainly responsible for that. The duck raised Abel to be a social climber.

"And if I outright refuse?"

Eadric sighed again. He knew this was coming. "You'd be forced."

Tanya gasped, standing up in her chair from outrage. "You can't do that! It's the laws that ducks have the right to choose who they wish to marry!"

"That is true but in times of warfare, the crested are treated differently. After all we are the ones controlling and representing the people's interests. Being in such a position of power means that some freedoms can and will be taken away when the situation calls for it."

Tanya refused to give in. "What if she revokes her status as crested?"

Eadric glared at Tanya, making the blond rethink what she had just said. "I realize you don't have a clue what you're talking about so let me explain that Mallory is a particularly special bloodline. Removing her from the crested would never be allowed."

"I know what her bloodline is." Tanya crossed her arms glaring back at Eadric in defense, making both ducks look at her curiously. "Look I know you're a DuCaine Mallory. I found it out before I came to your house." Eadric's jaw dropped and Mallory just smiled. Leave it to Tanya to figure anything out, now if only they could figure a way out of this arranged marriage.

"Alright be that as it may, it doesn't change anything. The fact is that you need another crested to get out of this and there are no more, trust me I've searched high and low. Its why Abel got away with not marrying, because there was an uneven amount of male to female crested by one male and now that you're back it's even again. I have thought of everything to get you out of this, there is nothing and Abel knows it, he has you cornered."

Mallory shook her head, refusing to believe this was happening and that this was it. Taking a deep breath, the redhead swallowed the need to start screaming _. "It's had already been two days since Tanya got here. We need to get back for our next game."_ She nodded to herself and composed her facial features. "Tanya we need to leave." She left the room without waiting for a response. Tanya jumped up and respectfully nodded goodbye to Eadric who returned the gesture.

He watched the eccentric blond race after Mallory. Once they were gone he rubbed his temples at the oncoming headache.

…..

Wildwing's irritation was obvious today. Opening a portal Duke walked through into Puckworld and called Tanya's com.

She answered after a couple of rings. "Tanya, come in."

"I'm here."

"Wildwing is getting' irritated. Where are ya? We have a game coming up!"

"We're coming back now." Mallory spoke from off the screen, surprising Duke who had not been expecting her.

"Mal Mal? Everything okay?"

"Peachy." Duke raised an eyebrow at the comment but kept quiet. He could tell by the look on Tanya's face that something was wrong. When he got the chance, he would pull the blond team tech to the side and ask what was going on, perhaps he could help.

"Okay? Well hurry back. See you soon." He hung up and stepped back through the portal into the Pond. The portal closed quickly but not quick enough, Wildwing came around the corner and saw it.

"Duke. What's going on? Have you contacted either Mallory or Tanya?"

The ex-thief wanted to roll his one good eye. "Yeah. They're together and are on their way back."

"Good." He didn't say anything after that, just marched off less tense then before but not much. It was a strange reaction from his leader. Wildwing had been stomping around for a whole day, it seemed like the longer both were gone without telling him, the angrier he got. Duke walked back to his room, wanting to stay out of the way when the girls got back.

…..

The world passed by the window in a blur as the vehicle was driven back by Edmond to the estate. Mallory was vaguely aware of the colors and shapes of the snowy world around her as she thought about her future, Tanya spoke softly in the background but she didn't really hear her. Sticking her hand in her cloak's inner pocket where she was keeping her com, her fingers wrapped around it and something else. Pulling both out, she saw a card had been left in there and a number was on the back. Flipping it over it read Ben Whistler, Professional Painter and Artist. "I completely forgot about this."

"Wh-what?" Tanya asked.

Realizing she spoke out loud, Mallory said it again. "I had completely forgotten that I was given this card, it's from a guy that used to sit behind me in one of my classes in college."

"Oh, did you know him well?"

"Not really but apparently he knew me." Mallory stared at the name. "Maybe making some new friends here wouldn't be a bad idea."

"I don't think it could hurt." Tanya spoke, seeing that this could be good for Mallory, especially with everything that is happening with Wildwing.

Slipping her com back into her pocket Mallory kept the card in her hand, not looking away from it. "Tanya… I don't think I'm going to head back yet."

"B-but we have a game!"

"Yeah in two days. I'll be back before then." Mallory smiled over at her friend.

"Okay. Well, I-I'll tell the others you'll just be a little longer." A mischievous smirk lit her face. "After all, you deserve a date."

The redhead nodded, not processing the statement until after a couple of seconds. "Wait. What?" Tanya just laughed at her friend as they arrived at Mallory's home.

…..

An hour later Tanya went back to Earth. The portal opened and closed quickly, leaving only one duck standing in the garage of the Pond. Not even a minute had passed when her com went off. Opening it she found Wildwing's face looking back at her. "You're back. Its fine if you go to Puckworld but you should leave information about where you will be in case of an emergency. Mallory should too. Is she with you?"

"Uh, no." He didn't say anything, just waited for an explanation. "She had to do something before she left. She's going to see an old friend but she said that s-she was gonna be back before the game." Wildwing sighed and nodded. He looked like he wanted to ask more but kept it to himself.

"Alright, Wildwing out." He hung up and the small screen of the com went black. Closing the lid, the blond sighed. Noting that her leader didn't seem to like that Mallory had left. Everyone here went back to Puckworld without telling anyone where they were going plenty of times before, everyone but Mallory and now that she finally had, he suddenly wanted to know where everyone went.

Mallory didn't hold back the details of why she and Wildwing were on such rocky terms. To Tanya it was obvious that he was hurt and probably still not over it but he was dating someone else now. Perhaps it's a way to try and forget the team's fiery redhead?

…..

The snow crunched softly under her feet, condensing to the ground with each step as the cloaked figure drew closer to her destination. The small but homey late night cyber café was well lit in the dark snowy night. Street lamps glowed softly, making the snow fall more visible. As she drew closer, the familiar silhouette of Ben leaned against a wall on the right side of the entrance. She pushed back her hood and smiled at the duck who looked up at her approach. "Mallory. I'm glad you called." He stood up right.

"I thought it would be nice to catch up." Mallory wasn't sure how this would go and after calling him, she started to doubt whether she should do this but had Tanya insisted she go.

He opened the door and held it like a gentleman. "After you." Grabbing a hot drink and a large sofa by the fireplace, they spent the next hour talking. Turns out Mallory and Ben had a lot in common. "So I saw that you were a painter. Mind if I ask what you paint?"

"Oh, all kinds of things. Landscapes, ducks, abstract, you name it and I do it."

Smiling she took a sip of her drink. "In any art galleries?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact. My studio is not far from here. Would you like to see it?" A gentle smile touched his beak and his eyes stared warmly at her.

Mallory contemplated it but figured it couldn't hurt and if it turns out he was a psychopath, she could easily kick his ass, though she didn't think he was. There was something in his eyes that told her he was a sweet soul. "Sure." Sipping down the last of her drink and leaving the cup on the table for clean up they both felt together.

Not long after, found them in Ben's studio. Mallory's jaw dropped at some of his work. "This is beautiful!" She walked up to the landscape painting of the city at night before it was destroyed by the invasion. Notable buildings stood tall that had been the first to go when the enemy touched down, their glasses surfaces reflecting the colors around them.

"I'm glad you like it. I take great pride in these. There are a lot of ducks lining up to buy these from me. I wasn't expecting them to be so well received. I thought most wouldn't want to even look at them, because they can be a reminder of what we've lost. I'm glad I was wrong." He stood beside her with his hands in his pockets.

"I don't see that when I look at them."

"Well what do you see?" He watched her face, taking note of the expression on her face as she looked at it.

Getting close to it she looked back at him. "May I touch it?"

"Sure. Its dry."

She reached out and ran her fingers over the deep strokes made by the fine bristles of the paint brush he used. Her fingers following the path that his brush had taken and traced the buildings. "I see hope."

"Hope?"

"Yes. So much of this was destroyed but already we have rebuilt or restored most of it. We will never give up, never surrender. This is proof of our people's resilience." His eyes traced her form, quoting her to memory.

"Thank you. I don't think anyone has said anything that nice about my art before."

Turning she saw the warmth in his eyes and realized his attraction to her. "I should probably go, it's getting late."

He seemed a little disappointed that she didn't want to stay for longer but nodded in understanding, figuring he'd give her an easy out on this one. "Yeah, I do have to get up early. Meeting with clients."

Mallory called a cab to come pick her up and then they walked outside together. "I had fun." With the way things were going she felt like she was never going to have a genuine smile again.

"Let's do it again soon."

"I would like that." Ben stood with her on the sidewalk as her cab arrived. When it pulled up, he opened the door for her to climb in. Mallory nodded, got in and gave the driver her address. As the cab left for home, she watched out of the back window as his form grew smaller but remained standing out in the snow, staring at her cab until it was out of sight.

…..


	5. Chapter 5

I don' own the Mighty Ducks.

AN: So much for one update a week…

The council chambers were made so that they surrounded the room, all going up level by level in large steps lined with elegantly craved desks and plushy seats. The ground floor was a large marble circle that was smooth out, the place where the speaker stood to address the council and make their argument. Everyone had the right to speak here. There may have been higher ranking members but that didn't mean that their decision outranked any of the lower ranking members. Everyone was equal.

The white feathered drake drummed his fingers in utter boredom while Eadric went on and on about Mallory's plan for meeting with the hawks. Eadric had hashed out the details with the council which had taken hours and now the meeting was ending. Abel looked around the room at the council members, all were present except for one, Mallory. "Where is she anyway?" He grumbled to himself. _"Isn't she supposed to be here, sitting beside me?"_ He thought about how she had punched him in the jaw when she last saw him. True the statement he made was rather bold but he wasn't going to lie about what she needed to do. _"Mallory has no business fighting in any battles. That's what grunts are for."_

Eadric's voice boomed across the chamber, drawing Abel from his thoughts and back to the situation at hand. "These discussions are now agreed upon and closed. Thank you for your time and attention in these important matters." The loud sound of the heavy doors to the chamber opened and Eadric made his exit.

About half of the council was still alive, so the room held many empty seats. Seats they hoped to fill with the offspring of the couples in this very room. Everyone in the chamber stood and started filing out of the door in an orderly fashion. The couples, which was everyone but Abel, all walked out of the room one by one next to each other. Abel used to take pride in the fact that he walked out by himself but now it only seemed to be something of an embarrassment. Now that Mallory was supposed to be his wife and she was not at his side, other may perceive her absence as disinterest in him. He couldn't allow that to happen, he was an incredibly desirable male among his peers and by far the best looking! Mallory should have been on her knees begging him to marry her, not the other way around! Maybe she just needed some convincing. Abel walked into the hall outside, he was going to show her what she is missing out on.

"How did it go?" Reynard spoke up from a corner, standing from a bench that was outside the chambers. Abel had been so lost in his thoughts that he had completely forgotten about Reynard.

"Fine I suppose. Boring as usual." He didn't care about the meeting, he had other matters on his mind. Making peace with the hawks wasn't one of them. "I think it's time I pay my fiancé another visit."

"That'll have to wait. I heard from a source that knows Eadric that Mallory isn't at her home. She's traveling and taking care of some sort of business."

Abel was irritated to hear the news, he stomped out to his awaiting car with Reynard walking beside him. "Honestly, what kind of _business_ could Mallory possibly have? And how did Eadric know?"

"She must have cleared it with him." Reynard shrugged. "Perhaps it has something to do with why she has been missing for so long?"

"Do you think she has another lover?" Abel, raised an eyebrow after asking the question, as if really considering it. Irritation nipped repeatedly at his mind. He was a duck that didn't share.

"She doesn't give me that impression." Reynard defended Mallory.

Abel climbed into his car with Reynard right behind him. "None the less, I think I might have someone look into this." Reynard would have sighed out loud but kept it to himself. He had known Abel since he was a kid. They had been good friends growing up but Abel's mom made him screwy. She raised him with the wrong morals and values. She took a sweet kid and turned him into a power-hungry leach, just like she was. She also didn't teach him to respect women or anyone else for that matter. His friend slowly changed to someone he didn't recognize and he was too far gone to go back to the way he was. She had done her job.

The night was dark but the stars shined brightly, lighting up the snow-covered world when they arrived back at the small estate that belonged to the crested family of Lovell. Though it wasn't nearly as large as the McMallard estate, it was still a substantial size compared to most homes. They piled into his home to relax where Jared was waiting for them a little drunk. "Glad you're back! Have a drink with me!" Another bad influence on Abel in his late teens, Jared drank and objectified women, something that also rubbed off on Abel. The butler took their coats and shoes for them, putting them away while the three drakes made themselves comfortable in the living room. Pouring Abel a drink, Jared handed him a glass of bourbon and went back to the bar to pour himself one.

Abel watched the flames dancing in his fireplace, the red reminding him of his soon to be wife. "Soon everything that is hers will be mine." In his right hand, the glass was swirled in slow circles with a slight twirl of his wrist. Taking a sip, the amber liquid burned as it went down and settled in his stomach.

"Are you even attracted to her?" Reynard sat in one of the many chairs in front of the fireplace.

"I'm more attracted to her title but yes, I find her very appealing." Aqua eyes observes the dancing flames in the fireplace, never taking his eyes off them. "I'll enjoy bedding her and placing her on my mantel. My personal little trophy, whom I can fuck whenever I please." He smirked.

Jared chuckled from across the room, pouring himself another glass of bourbon, the alcohol clearly had already gotten to his head. "When you marry her, we should have a big party."

Reynard rolled his eyes. "Isn't that what a wedding is?"

"Not the wedding, like an after party because Abel won. He beat that old f-fucker and married a woman above his class." As soon as the words left his mouth he cringed. Abel for the first time since they sat down turned away from the fire and glared over at him.

"Idiot, she isn't above my class! She's the level I should be at! Eadric never understood that I am better than this." He waved his hand around to the home surrounding him.

"R-Right, that's what I was saying."

Reynard didn't speak. He had his own thoughts on all of this. If anything, he felt bad for Mallory, he knew what kind of man Abel was and she deserved better. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that Abel would have a string of gold-digging women off to the side while he lived in luxury and spent money that wasn't his. Thanks to the current state of things, he would get away with it too. It was all very unfair.

Reynard sat back, thinking about the woman he loved. She was apart of a crested family and he was not. They had planned to marry but the invasion happened and the rules changed. Now she was married to another crested and his heart broke everyday he thought about it. She was lucky though, she didn't have to deal with someone like Abel. If she had he would have done something to stop it but she was in better care with her current husband then he could ever provide for her. She deserved the best. Reynard sat back, listening to the obnoxious things Abel would spout and Jared would only cheer him on. "Do you think she will be a biddable wife Reynard?" Abel questioned, wanting to know what he thought.

Reynard opened him mouth to speak but Jared beat him to it. "why wouldn't she be? She'll be lucky to have you." He flopped down on the sofa with his drink, drunkenly smiling at the ceiling.

Abel smirked, finding the answer acceptable even though it wasn't from the drake asked. "This is true."

"She will need taming." A feminine voice spoke up from the other side of the room. Reynard stiffened at the sound of the cold voice and Jared shrank in his seat.

"Mother, how was your day?" Abel looked over at the thin but beautiful woman that walked in clothed in fine silk robes. The cream colors only seemed to bring out her white feathers and long white hair that came down to her waist in a neat braid. Everything about her, from the way she walked to her features was elegant.

"Fine. Would be better if you had made progress with that girl." It was typically of Ciri to not ask her son how he was doing. She was only concerned about herself. "Jared, you have your own home, last time I checked." It was the signal that he wasn't welcome anymore.

"Y-yes mam'." Jared place his drink down and nodded his farewell to the others, excusing himself quickly. He may have objectified women but Ciri Lovell frightened him. Her cold aqua eyes, followed his form out without moving her head. Once he was gone she turned to Reynard.

"Your quarters await you. Go." She took a seat across from Abel while Reynard stood and left without saying a word, understanding that these orders were from him. "Plan the party."

Her son raised an eyebrow. "The one Jared was talking about?"

"No, the announcement party. You are going to official announce to the world that Mallory McMallard is your fiancé…" She smiled cruelly.

"How am I going to do that if she isn't there?"

"It's it obviously? You plan it while she is gone… then ambush her with the news on the day of the announcement. Once you make that announcement my son, she will have to begin the process and neither she nor the council will be able to do anything to stop it."

Abel laughed, polishing off the last of the bourbon. "I knew I got my brains from somebody."

"It certainly wasn't your father." She stood and left her son to think about what she said. Abel marrying Mallory would not only elevate his status but also hers, simply because she is family. _"If it's the last thing I do, that little bitch is going to marry my son, whether she likes it or not."_

…..

She couldn't stop thinking about what Edmond had told her before the night before. The conversation playing over and over vividly in her mind.

 _Sitting in her drawing room, Mallory stared at the empty seat across from her, the seat her brother used to sit in when they would talk or play a chess game. She had known since she first left Puckworld that her family was dead and during her time on Earth she mourned their loss. In a way, it didn't feel like it had happened while she was on Earth, being so far away in another universe made it almost like it didn't happen simple because she was surrounded by such a foreign place and beings. She had to focus her efforts on adapting and catching Dragaunus. Coming back home however had only reawakened that loss, made it more real. Now she was facing these emotions again and this time it the constant reminders of her family surrounded her. At least Edmond was still here._

 _She had gotten back ten minutes ago from seeing Ben. She had more fun than she thought she would. Though seeing the look on his face and in his eyes when they were in his studio had worried her, he obviously was attracted to her but she wasn't attracted to him. Besides she couldn't be, she was going to be forced to marry Abel unless there was a way out._

" _Have you given more thought to what I spoke with you about. About getting out of this marriage." Edmond spoke up, just entering the room. When Tanya had left Abel pulled Mallory aside to speak with her about a possible solution to her problem._

 _Mallory sighed, depressed. "It won't work."_

 _Edmond took a seat across from her. "It could if you asked him."_

" _It won't. Wildwing wouldn't do it because he has someone else."_

" _They are the only other ducks that fit the qualification to be a new crested bloodline, basically the same as how DuCaine became one." Edmond leaned back in his seat, leaning his head on his hand. "…Perhaps the younger brother?" Mallory gave him a disgusted look. "Okay, no then."_

" _Thanks for trying Edmond."_

" _There is one other person, if you are that desperate… Raulin Brocas will be coming to the metropolis in a week's time. I've heard rumors he is looking for a bride." Mallory looked at Edmond in surprise. "It's one of the last things I would want. If you married him, he would take you across the sea to the other side of the world but he wouldn't be Abel and I've heard he is kind, despite what the council thinks of him."_

" _I would never see you or my friends again."_

" _Yes. Most likely." Edmond stared at the floor. "He would take you away from here and everything familiar."_

 _Mallory nodded, knowing the chance of her using this solution was very high._

She growled, standing up quickly. "I need to get the hell out of my own head." She crossed her peach feathered arms, irritated that this was all she could think about as she walked out of her room. Mallory made it five steps away before the sound of Tanya's surprised greeting stopped her in her tracks.

"Mallory, you're back." Turning she smiled at the duck who had just spoken.

"Hey Tanya. Told you I would be didn't I." Seeing the book in Tanya's hands Mallory, nodded her head to it in question. "Watch ya got in your hand?" It was a book on crested family rituals and rules. "Still looking for a way for me to get out of that mess?"

"Uh yeah I think I have one."

Tanya was a great friend, it seemed to strike her more frequently these days. "Let's go in my room to talk."

A few minutes later both females sat in her room back to square one. "Is th-this really what's it's come down to?" Tanya asked. "You either marry t-tha-that jerk or someone who is going to take- ah yah know- whisk you away forever." Tanya's plan to get Mallory out of the marriage had been the same as Edmond's, marry Wildwing but Mallory refused to ask him for help. Now Raulin was in the picture as another option which was good but that meant she would live in Terron, the land the hawks resided in. While hawks were welcome in the Metropolis, ducks were not welcome over in Terron due to the old council holding a grudge, they would never see Mallory again and who knows, she may not be safe there.

Both their coms beeped rhythmically, letting them know it was time for practice. "We can talk more about this later, right now we need to get ready." Tanya stood up and walked to the door with less bounce in her step, her shoulders where hunched as if she had failed her friend. "Tanya…" She turned to Mallory. "None of this is your fault, you shouldn't feel guilty over something you can't control."

"I don't want you to go away Mallory. Y-you're family to me. The others think so too. We're all family." She looked at her booted feet, the tops shining up at her.

Mallory opened her mouth but no words would come out. What could she say to that? She felt the same way but life didn't always work out the way it should. "We- we should pretend like nothing is wrong. No need to worry the others."

"We're gonna have to tell them. When that happens, you won't be able to hide this from Wildwing."

Mallory just nodded, choosing not to say anything as Tanya grabbed the book and left her to change.

…..

Duke whistled to himself as he observed his teammates. Tanya was gloomy, mechanically skating around the ice, not making eye contact with anyone as they played their practice games. Mallory acted normal but was quiet, which was an indication something was wrong. Nosedive was normal and Wildwing seemed normal but Duke knew better, the way he held his shoulders and back gave him away. Grin was aware of the different levels of tension on the ice, which in turn bothered him. The big guy didn't like it when the team's energy was off balance so in turn he was off balance.

The ex-thief pretended everything was normal as he stole the puck from Mallory and took it back to the goal. He knew there had been issues since Wing brought back those small dimensional gateway generators but had no clue what it stemmed from. It was obvious it revolved around Wing and Mal, since Wildwing had been so pissed and specifically at Mallory.

Asking Wildwing what was going on would only draw attention to why he was angry and possibly make things worse. Asking Mal, would lead nowhere, that duck wasn't one to crack under pressure. Tanya on the other hand, knew what was going on. Mal and Tanya were close, they confided in each other. He would talk to Tanya and find out what was going on with his teammates.

Shooting the puck at the goal Duke aimed between Wildwing's feet. The large drake blocked the shot with his stick, letting the puck bounce off and back out into play.

…..

Mallory thought a rough game of hockey would put her in a better mood. It didn't, the practice only brought attention to the fact that she wasn't going to be able to play hockey with her friends anymore.

Mallory was now sitting in the lab with Tanya, helping her upgrade her Omitool… which meant holding tools Tanya would need while she worked. She watched the blond, her brows wrinkled in concentration, screwing in the different nuts and bolts to closeup the multi-purpose wrist guard. "There, almost done."

"Hey Tanya, I've got to tell you something." Mallory played the one of the large round nuts that Tanya had yet to bolted in place.

"Oh?" She listened while working, her tongue sticking out of the side of her beak in concentration.

"Yeah. Earlier today in my room when we were talking… I just wanted to let you know that I feel the same way about you and I realize that I don't tell the ones I care about just how much they mean to me. Then with everything going on at home and being the last DuCaine, you've been so helpful and supportive when I really couldn't go to anyone about it." Tanya's eyes widened, hearing this. "I mean with everything that you've done for me, trying to help me get out of this marriage… I just… I want you to know that… I love you, your family to me too."

She was touched. Mallory never spoke this way to anyone. Tanya didn't say anything, just hugged Mallory who was only a little surprise but returned the hug.

A plastic container dropping had them both turning quickly towards the sound. When they did they finally saw someone had witnessed the whole thing. Duke stood there with a yogurt spoon halfway to his mouth, his jaw dropped in astonishment, the yogurt cup at his feet was splatter across the floor in front of him. Both females froze in horror waiting for his reaction. How long had he been there? Did he hear that she was a DuCaine? Was he going to tell the others?

Seemingly snapping out of it, Duke picked up his dropped yogurt and threw it into the trash. "Well, I guess this answers some of my questions." They only stared at him with rounded eyes. He closed the door behind him and sat on one of the many stools. Leaning his elbows on the counter, Duke rested his head on his hands. "So… who wants to go first?" The one-eyed drake stared at them expectantly, waiting for an answer.

…..

If there was one thing that came with being a thief, it was keeping secrets. He kept them all his life and never once spilled them to others, even when captured and beaten by a rivaling gang or a couple of dirty cops. He knew things that would make one pale in horror but this was really something.

The DuCaine bloodline was alive, Puckworld's government knew it and kept it a secret. That was one hell of a secret to keep. They had hidden it to the point where many thought Drake DuCaine was nothing more then a legend. Impressive really. Their follow teammate was technically a piece of Puckworld's history, her blood sacred.

After Mallory and Tanya explained the situation, Duke rubbed his temples trying to calm the storm of thoughts running rapidly through his mind. "So, wait? How come Canard found the mask in an ancient tomb in Twin Beaks?"

"It wasn't a tomb. It was in an underground vault. Canard broke passed its defenses and technically _stole_ it." Mallory answered, a little miffed. She was angry to see Canard wearing the mask when he, Wildwing, and Nosedive approached her on the street to help lead the fight against Dragaunus but she held her tongue and agreed to help for a cause greater then herself. Don't get her wrong, she planned on demanding it back once the fight was over but due to obvious reasons she didn't.

"Well that explains that." He leaned back, crossing his arms, his one good eye looking back and forth between the two secretive females. "I agree wit' Tanya on this one Mal Mal. You need to talk to Wildwing."

"That's not an option." She stubbornly refused to ask for help, arms crossed, signaling her closed mindedness to the idea.

"You think it would be bette' to go marry this Raulin than ask Wildwing for help?" He didn't understand her reservations.

"Only I wouldn't just be asking for help, I'd be asking him to marry me. He has a girlfriend. I'm not doing that."

"Does he even like the girl that much?" Duke raised a disbelieving eyebrow. "What you see and what's really goin' on might be two different things Mal."

She growled, clenching her fists to release some of the built-up irritation from having to argue against this idea repeatedly. Standing suddenly, she walked to the door. "I need some air. I'm going topside for a second." If she didn't leave she might say something snippy in her frustration and Duke didn't deserve that, he was just trying to help. She walked out the door, marching down the hall to the elevator that would take her to their locker room.

Tanya and Duke listened to her footsteps fading down the hall. "Mallory's not thinking this through Tanya." He looked at the blond who was still staring at the floor.

"M-maybe. I don't want to go behind her back but I think I should talk to Wildwing."

"At this point, I don't think it could hurt Sweetheart."

…..

Outside of the Pond at the front doors of the stadium, Mallory paced back and forth, thinking over what Duke and Tanya said. Both wanted her to just go talk to Wildiwng but she was afraid. It wasn't something she was proud of. She didn't want to talk to him because she was afraid of his rejection. What if he didn't care? That frightened her. She wanted him to care so badly, hearing that he didn't would be devastating. Possibly even more heartbreaking then seeing him kiss someone else or hearing that he had another lover... and in his words 'she was great'.

She shook her head as if to physically shake the painful memories out. Without thought she brought her hand up to cover her heart, shielding it. There was the possibility that he still did still care. Should she ask him for help? What would he even say if she explained everything?

Mallory could almost hear her mother's voice, telling her that she would never know until she tried. Advice that she often received when she was a little girl. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Mallory felt the breeze on her face. This was ridiculous, she wasn't a coward, so it was time to stop acting like one. "I have to try." Turning around she walked back in and took the elevator down.

…..

Sitting in the Rec Room on one of the large sofas, Wildwing flipped through channels. Nothing really catching his interest, he turned off the large monitor they used for television and left the room. Walking towards the kitchen with the intent to grab a water, he stopped short hearing Tanya call his name.

"Wildwing wait up!" She ran to catch up with him.

"Hey Tanya. What is it?" Turning to face her he crossed his arms and awaited her answer.

She stopped in front of him. "Look it's about Mallory. There's some issues she's having back home."

Holding up his hand he interrupted her before she could explain further. "Tanya whatever Mallory is dealing with back on Puckworld is none of my business." He wanted to think about Mallory as little as possible. Keeping his mind occupied and off her was helping him move on.

Tanya's jaw dropped, almost speechless. "Bu-but she's in trouble."

"She knows how to get out of trouble just fine on her own." Wildwing remained unconcerned as he walked down the hall. "Mallory will have to solve her own problems like everyone else."

Tanya didn't think Mallory was right about him but apparently, she was. Suddenly angry she ran in front of her leader, stopping him from going further. "Wildwing, Mallory's being forced into marriage against her will!"

His eyes widened for a second, studying Tanya's face then narrowed disbelievingly at the news. "No one can be forced into marriage on Puckworld, the laws are pretty clear."

He seriously didn't believe her? "Not for her." Tanya argued. Frustrated from the stubbornness of Mallory and now his disbelief, she spoke without thinking. "I thought you loved her!"

It had been the wrong thing to say. "I don't love her!" He practically snarled causing Tanya to take a step back. "She's a teammate nothing more!" He pushed passed the stunned blond, marching down the hall and taking a sharp right towards his bunk, completely forgetting about his water. "Mallory can get herself out of trouble!" She watched him disappear around the corner, the opening and closing of a door signaled that he was in his room.

At a loss on what to do, Tanya stood and stared in the direction he had disappeared, not realizing she had company.

"I should have known." Mallory spoke up from behind her. Turning quickly to see the redhead come out from her hiding spot, her eyes had a sad tilt to them.

"Ma-Mallory…"

"It's okay… "She interrupted her. "I was screwed the moment I went back."

…..


	6. Chapter 6

I don't own the Mighty Ducks

Mallory checked her room, making sure she had everything she needed before leaving for good. After hearing Wildwing in the hall she decided that it was time to go, the team would be fine without her. She had said her goodbyes to everyone except Wildwing. Nosedive and Grin had both been confused but respected her wish to speak with Wildwing about it herself. Lifting her right hand, she studied the small metal gateway generator in her palm, the cause of her misery. Walking out of her room she made her way down the hall. "Who am I kidding. I have no one to blame but myself."

The sound of booted feet coming closer made her look up. Wildwing rounded the corner, seeing her he just pretended that she wasn't there as he walked by. Mallory didn't say anything, just watched him walk passed her. "Are you going to ignore me forever?" Hearing her question, he stopped.

Sighing, he looked up at the ceiling trying to gather his thoughts to speak with her. "What do you want me to say?"

"Anything. I think I'd rather you tell me you hate me then just straight up ignore me."

"I… don't hate you."

She turned to look at him, his back still facing her. "Really? I couldn't tell." He didn't speak, so she went on. "I have to tell you something."

Glancing over his shoulder, he made eye contact with her for the first time that week. "Your problems are your own Mallory."

She opened her mouth to speak but closed it hearing what he said. She chuckled, looking down at her feet and shaking her head. _"How could I forget."_ Everything she had been prepared to say went out the window with one sentence from him. "Wildwing is there anything I can do to change what's happened between us?"

"No." Looking back at her, a frown tugged at the corner of his mouth. "After what you did… I can't…" He couldn't finish his sentence.

"Okay." She turned at walked away. "I'm sorry. I can only say it so many times. I did what I did because I care about you all. I just wanted everyone to be happy… I wanted you to be happy but it backfired. In the end, you found your own happiness. I'm glad. She looks like she makes you happy." He snapped his head over to her, surprised she knew about Ida. "Goodbye." Mallory gave him a small salute and walked off, disappearing around the corner while he stood there thinking about what she said.

"Goodbye?" The sound of a generator being used made him jump into action. Running around the corner he saw the portal close quicker then he could run to it. A little panic started to set in and wanting proof, he ran to her room, opening it to see most of the things she had collected were still there, except for her uniforms, gear, and pictures. He looked around and found her com sitting on the bedside table. Going back down the hall that Mallory activated the generator in he noticed something that he hadn't before. Mallory's small gateway generator was laying on the floor. She had opened it and tossed it back through, so she could never come back unless someone went to get her. Now he realized what she wanted to say to him. "Shit."

…..

Tanya was packing an overnight bag. Mallory told her she was officially leaving for good and there had been nothing she could say that would make her friend stay. The redhead had extended an invitation for her to come stay at her home any time she liked but it still didn't stop Tanya from being sad that she wasn't going to see Mallory on a day to day basis. They had become the best of friends here on Earth, a part of her felt like she was losing a family member even though she would see her again… but for how long? She told the red head that she would be visiting tonight. Tanya wanted to spend as much time with her as possible since there could be a chance that Mallory may marry Raulin and move to Terron.

The sound of hurried footsteps, caught her attention. Quickly after, a loud knock was at her door. "Who is it?"

"Tanya where did Mallory go?" Wildwing asked from the other side of the door.

She sighed and went to the door, opening it so they could talk. Wildwing stood there looking stoic though he was anything but. "Home."

"Where is home?"

"I don't know if it's a good idea that I tell you that." Tanya looked a little worried.

"Why?"

She shrugged her shoulders nervously. "I'm just n-not sure it would be a good idea, yah know with everything that's happened."

"I need to speak to her."

She sighed. "Well, I was g-gonna visit her tonight. Let _me_ talk to her first."

"Why… and why did she suddenly leave? It isn't like her to just quit." He realized that he and Mallory hadn't been on the best terms and mostly that was because of him but this wasn't something that would lead to Mallory just quitting the team. The preverbal rug had been pulled out from under him with her recent actions and he was left spinning.

"She might be upset. I mean, she did hear what you said in the hallway."

It was Wildwing's turn to sigh. He had forgotten about how he snapped at Tanya, he needed to apologize. A good leader never took out his frustrations on his teammates. "I'm sorry I snapped at you but I need to talk to Mallory, straighten all this out. I want her to know that I don't want her to leave, I just… I don't know." He pulled her gateway generator from his pocket and showed it to Tanya. "I want to give this back to her… after all… she worked so hard to get it." The end of his sentence held an edge to it.

Tanya opened her beak then closed it, thinking about what she was about to tell him. "She didn't sleep with him."

He stiffened, eyes widening. "What?"

"Mallory told me everything that happened. Yeah it was stupid on her part but you did stop it before it could happen. Just s-so ya know."

"... Why didn't she tell me that?"

"Probably cause you never gave her a chance." He looked like he wanted to say more but Tanya interrupted him. "Let me talk to her. See if she'll come back to speak with you."

He nodded, swallowing the questions that he wanted to ask, he would save them for when he talked to Mallory. "Thanks Tanya."

…..

Earlier that day on Puckworld, Ben was in his studio. The brush took the lead and he just followed it as the image on his canvas took form. He wasn't sure what he was painting, sometimes his subconscious took over and what was on his mind ended up on the canvas.

Continuing to paint, he realized he was painting Mallory. In it, she sat boldly, wearing luxurious robes that were partially undone as if she was getting ready for bed. The heavy robe slipped off one shoulder to reveal a sensual amount of skin but never revealing any body parts, only her décolletage. It was just enough to tease, her eyes sparkled impishly and a knowing smile brushed over her mouth.

When the painting was complete, he knew he had to see her again. Going to his desk, Ben found the card with her number on it. Nervously twirling it between his fingers as he worked up the courage to dial the number. He held his breath, it rang a few times before someone picked up. "McMallard residence."

…..

The generator dropped her off right at her front door, watching as it closed behind her. She should have been happy to be home but at this moment it only reminded her of the chains she would soon be in. "Though some chains are worse than others." She muttered, thinking about Abel. If Abel had his way she would be spending the rest of her life on her back, popping out kids like a breeding mare. The thought made her shiver in disgust.

Going into her home, she was greeted by Edmond hanging up the phone. "Welcome home Mallory." He smiled, always glad to see her. "That was good timing. A Ben Whistling just called for you. He wanted to meet you. I told him you weren't here but seeing that you are now, would you like me to call him back and give him your answer?"

"Not just yet." Mallory walked numbly to her room. "I need a minute."

Edmond didn't question her, she looked upset as she slowly walked up the stairs and took a right to her bedroom. Between Wildwing's rejection, her family's death, and a forced marriage, she was ready to collapse.

The mentally fatigued duck closed her bedroom door and crawled onto her bed, laying there and staring at the ceiling. It was the morning but she was so tired. Before she knew it her eyes slipped shut and she fell into a peaceful sleep.

Four hours later, she felt someone gently nudge her awake. Mallory's eyes cracked opened. "Mallory. Wake up. You've slept a long time. Did you not get any sleep last night?" Edmond's voice held a hint of worry.

She sat up, trying to shake off her sleep. Turning to look at the clock she realized she had slept for hours. "Oh wow. I did not mean to do that. I was just trying to relax." She yawed, covering her mouth with her hand.

Seeing her disoriented state Edmond wrinkled his brows a little worried. "Why don't you get up and I'll make you something to eat." Mallory only nodded, watching him as he left her to meet him downstairs. Getting to her feet Mallory, walked out of her room and went down the opposite end of the hall towards another set of stairs that would lead to the kitchen and one of the largest living rooms in the estate.

The sound of crackling wood and the warm glow coming from the living room entry told Mallory that Edmond had a cozy fire burning in the fire place. The large television, hung above it on the wall. Sitting on the long plush couch, Mallory sank into it, turning on the television and switching over to the news to see what the buzz was in Puckworld.

A female duck with tan feathers, curly blond hair and blue eyes looked directly out at the audience. _"Breaking news tonight, the Council of the Crested will be meeting with Terron's last crested family before the weeks end. There isn't a confirmed date on when this will take place but we were able to get a statement from Crested Eadric Warde who did confirm that a signed peace treaty is the goal."_

Rolling her eyes, Mallory flipped the channel to an old movie. The last thing she wanted to think about was Raulin and peace treaties. However, the movie wasn't any better. She used to love this movie when she was a teenager. It was about a girl in high-school who didn't fit in and she was in love with the school hockey captain, who in turn liked the head cheerleader. Again, not wanting to think about her situation with Wildwing she flipped the channel again.

Thinking she was in the clear, Mallory placed the remote down on the table next to her and leaned back, pulling her legs up on the sofa so that she could get comfortable. She didn't know what the show was but assumed it had to be better than the last two channels.

A woman was running through busy city streets, she weaved in and out of ducks walking by her. Seeing a drake walking with a suitcase in hand she called his name. He stopped to see who called him. When he saw who was approaching, he turned to see what she wanted. _"Don't make this harder then it has to be."_ He spoke. The woman frantically shook her head no. _"No! Not until you hear me out. It was a mistake. Please don't go away! You have to know."_ She dramatically grabbed onto his shoulders and looked up at the guy who waited on baited breath to hear what she was going to say. _"I love you! I've only loved you and no one will ever love you the way I do!"_ She jumped up and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck. The drake kissed her back, dramatic music playing in the background.

Mallory snatching the remote back, she flipped the channel again. "Seriously enough of the romance bullshit." She hissed at her television. At this point, she was constantly flipping through channels, only hearing a few words at a time.

" _Broken"-"My heart"-"Who knew it would hurt so bad."- "It's like someone out there is mocking me!"_

"Argh! Fuck you! What is your deal?" She stood up suddenly shouting at the inanimate object, shaking the remote at the screen in pure frustration. "I don't want to be reminded of this shit!" The quick movement caused the remote to slip from her fingers. Feeling it slipped from her hand had instantly snapped her out of her rage as she could only watch as it sailed in a straight line across the room and directly into her television screen, busting through it. Mallory stared at it in shock and horror, that was definitely not what she wanted. "Oops." She whispered, realizing that she had just accidently thrown the remote through the tv screen. It flickered before going black and dying.

Edmond ran in looking worried. "What's wrong?" He saw the tv and blinked a few times to make sure he was seeing it right. "Is that the remote in the tv?"

Mallory blushed. "It was an accident." She lamely stated, placing her hands behind her back and standing straight.

The older drake sighed. "Don't worry. I will go find a replacement, it shouldn't take long." Edmond looked at her from the corner of his eye a little worried. "Perhaps going out might do you some good."

She could only nod, the blush still adorning her cheeks and the top of her beak as Mallory tried to appear calm and collected. "Yes. That'll be good." It sounded awkward even to her ears. The blush never left her face as she made her exit.

…..

Going out had been the right thing to do. She had taken her fathers bike into the city, exploring some of the new shops that popped up. Doing a little window shopping helped her spirits, it kept her mind occupied. While passing one shop, she saw a scarf in the window that struck her. It was a lovely light purple. The fabric was thick and heavy but had a shine to it. Mallory was instantly reminded of Tanya. "It would look so pretty on her." Unable to resist the scarf was instantly purchased. Leaving the store with a small bag in hand, Mallory made her way to the café she had met Ben at.

Going in she ordered a hot chocolate and took a seat, waiting for it to be brought to her table. It occurred to her that Ben's studio wasn't far from her location and he had called to see her again. _"Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea. I did have fun with him."_ She was about to call him using her watch but stopped when she spotted him walking down the snowy street towards the café. He was wearing a thick black jacket, snow had collected on his shoulders as he walked.

Closing her watch Mallory waited for him to get closer and tapped on the glass. He looked over at her, his face registering surprise but a smile touched his beak. She gestured her hand to the seat across from her, asking him if he wanted to join her. Nodding he walked in, shaking the snow off by the door. "Mallory. How have you been?" Taking the seat across from her he took off his jacket and placed it on the back of his chair.

She would have scuffed but didn't want to be rude. "I suppose I've been better."

He tilted his head at her. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing I want to talk about right now. I'd rather enjoy a cup of hot chocolate and conversation with you." She smiled at Ben, who returned the gesture. He was only too happy to spend the afternoon with her.

…..

Talking with Ben had passed the time quickly. They had a lot in common and the more time she spent with him the more she liked him but only as a friend. You can't force attraction. Driving into the garage, Mallory parked the bike and entered her home.

"Edmond? I'm home." Surprised that she wasn't greeted by the older drake and that everything looked ready to receive a party. "What the heck is going on?" She locked the door behind her. Taking her shoes off and walking towards one of the smaller living rooms where the sounds of talking came from. Confused Mallory quickened her pace but froze upon seeing who was there. Abel sat comfortably on her couch next to a woman she hoped to never see again, Ciri. "What do you think you are doing in my home?" Mallory demanded an answer. Ciri stood up walking around the sofa to greet her, brushing her long fingers over the expensive furniture and looking around as if she had plans for the estate. Knowing her, she probably did. Even though Ciri was older she still looked like she should be modeling for some magazine, she may have been very beautiful on the outside but on the inside, she was one of the ugliest people Mallory had ever had the displeasure of knowing.

"I'm here to greet my new daughter in law." She stopped in front of the redhead, looking her up and down in disapproval. The only thing she wanted from Mallory was money and power. "I had hoped for a more attractive wife for my son but considering what the others look like, you will do." Mallory bristled at the insult. "What are those rags your wearing?" Ciri walking in slow circles around her, like a shark circling its prey.

"It's called causal wear and you didn't answer my question!"

"My son has the right to visit his new home. You'll need to remodel your parents' bedroom, that will become my quarters since I will be here often."

This bitch had been in her home without her permission and started ordering her around like she owned the place. Not to mention demanded the master bedroom in which her parents slept! "No! That is my room and my room alone. This is not your home and it is not his yet either. So, in the mean time you will act like a guest and request permission to visit first! Do I make myself clear? How did you get in anyway?"

"One doesn't kiss and tell." Ciri smirked, completely unfazed by Mallory's outrage. She walked away going towards the large kitchen, swaying her hips as she went. "I'm going to grab another drink, there is a lot that needs to be done and I can hardly wait for the party."

"What party?"

"Our party Mallory." Abel stood up and approached her. "The party to announce our engagement. Everyone has already been invited and as you can see the decorations and planning have been taken care of. You're welcome by the way."

"I would beat some sense into you if I thought it would help." Mallory took a step back from him.

"You shouldn't talk that way to your future husband." He smirked.

"Where is Edmond?" Mallory demanded, clenching her fists. She worried for him, Ciri was known to take things too far in order to get what she wanted.

"I'm sure I don't know. He wasn't here when we arrived. Perhaps you should fire him?"

Her face shifted to rage. "If you don't leave my home right now -"

"Oh please. Let's not move on to cliché threats. This was going to happen no matter what you do." He brought his hand up to touch her cheek, Mallory leaned back in disgusted.

"You will definitely not be doing that at the party." Ciri said walking back into the room and setting down her freshly made drink. "And when we make the announcement, you two will kiss to show the everyone in the room what a good match you are." She came to stand behind Mallory, who shifted uncomfortably.

"No. I'm not going along with this."

"You will, otherwise an unfortunate accident may happen to that weak old butler." Ciri grabbed Mallory's upper arms digging her nails into the skin, making sure her threat was understood. "Now let's see a practice kiss."

Mallory looked over her shoulder at Ciri, staring her straight in the eyes. "Fuck you." Abel's face changed quickly to anger, he backhanded her across her cheek, whipping her head to the side.

Ciri laughed and shifted her grip down to Mallory's wrist, holding them behind her back. "What a good son I have to defend me."

Shifting to fight back Mallory was about to retaliate but Abel grabbed the back of her neck to stop her from throwing her head back into Ciri's face. "None of that."

"This is assault!" Mallory yelled, trying to free her wrists with no success.

"Oh please. They aren't going to put us in jail for that. We are crested. The rules are different for us." Ciri smirked. "Besides, it would be your word against ours and I can make it look like my son was defending me."

"You're twisted." Mallory cringed at Abel tightening his hold in her hair. Mallory looked him in the eyes, hoping there was a part of him that realized this was wrong. "You know this is wrong Abel." She saw a flash of something but it was gone in an instant.

"Stop fighting and everything will be fine." He leaned forward, considering her frightened eyes. "I promise." Bringing his mouth down he pressed it on hers, his eyes closing to enjoy the kiss.

The hand that wasn't in her hair went to the side of her face, pulling her in deeper. Attempting to pull away only made Abel's fist tighten and Ciri's nail dig deeper _"I don't care how they hurt me. I'm not letting this happen!"_ Mallory started to struggle again, wanting to be free but breaking their grip on her was almost impossible by herself. She feared what they planned to do to her as Abel's hand slid down her body to wrap around her waist and pull her close. Yanking to pull her hands free caused Ciri's nails to break the skin, she could feel warm blood start to drip from her wrists, an involuntary whimper escaped Mallory's throat.

A loaded gun cocked not far from them, everyone froze. Abel released Mallory from his kiss at the feel of warm sharp metal at his throat, his mother gasped.

"Where I come from, that ain't no way to treat a lady." Duke glared at the drake both Mallory and Tanya told him about. Stepping back with his hands up, Abel nodded to Duke that he understood. Ciri also release Mallory, moving quickly away from her, taking cover by her son. Tanya never let her gun's aim drop from the woman that had been holding her friend captive. "Get out, the both of ya's or I will seriously fuck up pretty boy's perfect face." He pointed his sword at Abel's right eye.

Ciri was the first one to get her composer back. "Very well. We were just about to leave anyway."

Mallory moved quickly to Tanya's side, glaring at the two very unwelcome visitors. "Get the fuck out of my house!" She was seething, holding everything back to keep herself from breaking Abel's face.

He nodded, knowing when to back down. "We'll see you tomorrow Mallory." He looked down at her wrists, then turned and left quickly with Ciri following him.

Duke escorted them out, making sure they left. He watched from the front door as their fancy car drove away and passed the gates. Only when the gates closed behind the car did he go back into the estate, locking the front door.

Walking back into the living room, he saw Tanya tending to Mallory's wrists while speaking softly to the redhead, who would shake or nod her head in response. Dabbing at the cuts and spraying disinfectant on them, she wrapped her wrists gently but firmly. "T-There. All done."

"Thanks."

"What happened?" Tanya raised an eyebrow. "Why were they here?"

"Good question. I came back home to find them sitting in my house acting like they owned the place." The redhead tested her wrists. The skin was tender but that was it, superficial injuries.

"They had the nerve to come into your house and do that to ya? We should have beaten a lesson into them." Duke put his saber back on his shoulder.

"Wouldn't've helped anything. In the end because they're crested, you might have gotten into trouble." She sneered at the backwards laws regarding crested. Part of her was curious as to why Duke was there but decided she didn't care, if anything she was happy he dropped by with Tanya.

"Maybe so but you have to admit it would have been entertaining."

"Yeah." She laughed at the image. "Thanks for coming to my rescue."

"What are friends for." Duke shrugged.

"Why would you see them again tomorrow?" Tanya asked.

"They've planned something behind my back. I need to talk to Eadric to see if I can stop this. Then confront them about it."

"Th-then let's go now!" Tanya stood up. "We'll show him what they came in and did to you! He'll have to do something!"

Mallory seemed unsure but nodded. The sound of the front door opening had everyone jumping up, ready for a fight. Edmond walked in pulling a large box, seeing everyone standing defensively he jumped back in fright. Realizing it was him, Mallory and Tanya relaxed but Duke kept his hand on his saber. "It's okay Duke. It's just Edmond." Mallory placed her hand on his tense shoulder. Nodding he put his saber away.

Edmond closed the door, looking back and forth between them. "Did something happen?"

…..

Slamming the door of the self-driving car shut, he settled into the seat, looking out the back window at the duck watching them leave the premises. This night had not gone as he planned but it didn't matter. Nothing would change. His watch beeped. Looking down at it he saw who was calling him and opened it. "What did you find?"

"She was on what appears to have been a date tonight." The mysterious voice answered.

"I knew it."

"They don't appear to be lovers."

"None the less I want to deal with this right away." Abel looked at his watch, seeing it was only eight at night. "Give me his address. I'm going to pay him a visit." The address was sent to his watch. Once it was received he hung up. Forwarding the information to his car, the dashboard lite up with the new address on the screen.

"No." Ciri spoke. "First you will drop me off at Eadric's estate."

Abel raised an eyebrow but nodded and typed in the new coordinates in his watch and sent the information to the car. "Why are you going there?"

"Since you didn't ambush her on the day of the party, I now have to ensure that it takes place."

"And how are you going to do that?" Abel raised an eyebrow at his mother.

"Never mind that. Go do whatever it is that you were going to do. I will safeguard our future." She spoke in a displeased tone as their car updated its navigation and changed direction.

…..

Wildwing threw his weight into his punches, trying to relax and exhaust himself but it wasn't working. Tanya had left three hours ago with his message to Mallory. What was taking so long. Before she left with Duke she said she would let him know right away. Taking a step back from the abused punching bag he put his hands on his hips, taking deep steady breaths.

He was angry. He shouldn't have been because he thought he cared about Ida but since Tanya told him about Mallory's _arranged_ marriage, he had once again been unable to take his mind off the redhead. Completely unsettled at the idea she was being forced to marry someone. He wanted to know if it was true. After everything he couldn't stop caring about her, no matter how hard he tried. Then she quit the team and left for Puckworld permanently, showing how serious she was.

Roughly yanking on the velcro that held his boxing gloves on, he loosened them and threw the black gloves to the ground. Tanya may not be back until tomorrow with an answer to his message and he was worried about what the answer might be.

…..

Mallory glared at the duck standing at Eadric's door. Ciri, she had planned ahead and gotten to Eadric before the three could. Ciri had the nerve to smile as she walked up to them, swaying her hips. Stopping in front of Mallory she smiled down at the shorter woman. "I want you to know, that I don't hold what you did against you." Confusion colored their faces.

"Mallory, I need to speak with you urgently." Eadric stood grimly in the doorway.

The smile never leaving her face, the white-haired duck walked around them, brushing passed Duke in a flirtatious form. His eyes followed her out, the glare never once leaving his face. He knew plenty of ducks like that back in the guild, nothing good ever came from them. Falcone had a startling similar personality, making Duke despise her even more. Charms and looks didn't cover up the ugly underneath.

Eadric walked back to his desk. "Ciri Lovell said you tried to attack her. She said that she and Abel had to restrain you." Tanya took a seat in an empty chair next to Mallory while Duke stayed back by the door.

"It was the other way around. They attacked me." Mallory brought up her wrists to show Eadric the bandages. His eyes traced her wrists.

"Ya and we witnessed it." Tanya added her input.

"So, I heard. She wants to prosecute you both for pulling weapons on crested family members."

Both ducks stiffened when they heard this.

"They did it in defense of another crested whom Ciri and Abel were attacking." Mallory interrupted.

"Of that I have no doubt." He grumbled, leaning back in his chair. He knew the Lovells, he knew Ciri would do terrible things to get what she wanted. When it came to his personal choice he would always side against them but since this was all attached to a political situation, that made everything more complicated. "This couldn't have come at a worse time." Eadric rubbed his temples.

"Why?"

"Because Raulin Brocas arrives tomorrow for negotiations." Tanya gasped at hearing this, the gravity of what it all meant weighing heavy.

Mallory too realized the complications this could cause. Two families in a feud could not attend political negotiations, since their resentment towards one another could affect clear headedness in said negotiations.

To add onto it, if Mallory continued to argue that both Abel and Ciri attacked her and not the other way around then it would need to be taken before the courts and judged by key members of the council. It would take months to clear and in the meantime, everything else would have to proceed as planned. Meaning Mallory would still have to marry Abel even if the families were feuding. By doing this they cut off her ability to speak with Raulin and stalled her, forcing her into the marriage. So it was either fight and marry Abel anyway or accept the blame, which looked really bad for her, and try to convince Raulin to take Mallory as his wife, though with accepting the blame, he may view her as an unworthy candidate.

"That conniving bitch!" Mallory stood suddenly, pacing back and forth. She must have known Mallory would make a play for Raulin. The bitch was covering all her bases, practically backing Mallory into a corner. "I hate politics!" The redhead had always been better with her fists while Ciri thrived in the political arena. It was an unfair matchup. Mallory couldn't hope to outwit Ciri with politics.

"I'm sorry Mallory. If you want to try to appeal to Raulin to avoid Abel then you might have to accept blame."

"Which would mean I'd have to host a party for them as a sign of peace between houses… that's the party they were talking about and their going to announce the engagement while they're at it. Like rubbing salt in an open wound." She hissed, clenching her fists. "We'll what about Tanya and Duke? They are credible witnesses."

"Yes, they are but pulling a weapon on crested is a serious offence. They will most likely have to be detained while the courts proceed over the case." She shook her head, placing her hands over her eyes in pure frustration. "I'm sorry Mallory I didn't make the rules." Duke scuffed angrily at the bullshit that was the political system and Tanya shifted uncomfortably in her chair.

Looking at her friends, she knew she would have to try a different route. "Eadric, I know Edmond told you everything. About my mission and where I've been." He just nodded, he knew and he was proud. "Well, you are looking at two of my teammates who were instrumental in Dragaunus' downfall. Shouldn't this grant them political pull?"

"Yes, it will once they have been announced and recognized by the courts but again these things take time. The council would need to hear their story with provided evidence."

"Well we got that. The Areowing recorded Wildwing shooting Dragaunus' ship down and sending him to the bottom of the ocean in flames."

"That's all well and good but in the meantime, you will have to be treated as regular citizens until your approval."

"I'm not letting them go to jail for protecting me." Mallory snapped but calmed herself with deep breaths. "Do you think if I go to Ciri and agree to the fault being mine she would lay off them being thrown into jail?"

Eadric gave it some consideration then nodded. "Probably but if I were you _and you didn't hear this from me_ … I would hide them to protect them." He looked over at Duke and Tanya. "You've all done a great deal for Puckworld. Something that has not been since Drake DuCaine. If I can help it, I won't see you punished for doing what was right." Everyone looked at Eadric surprised, he was one of the senior members of the council. He was supposed to enforce the rules not break them. Technically he should have Duke and Tanya arrested right there and then. The duck looked between the three astounded faces. "What? Didn't think I'd bend the rules for you. Please. I would do anything to piss off the Lovells."

Tanya laughed into her hand while Duke smirked, he like Eadric more and more.

"Now as for dealing with Ciri, here is what I think you should do. Accept the blame, host the party. Abel will most likely announce his engagement to you there but nothing is final until you are formally married. That way you can meet Raulin and engage his interest. Ciri would never expect me to intervene in one of her schemes but I'm going to do everything in my power to stop this marriage from happening."

Mallory smiled over at the old drake. "Thanks Eadric."

"Don't thank me yet. We'll see if we can pull this off, it's a long shot. In the meantime, you may want to consider what Edmond recommended." He looked at her meaningfully.

She realized he was talking about Wildwing but her ex-leader made it quite clear that he didn't even see her as a friend right now, let alone a wife. To pacify him she just nodded, there was no point in arguing that.

Tanya wanted to smack her hand to her forehead. With everything that was happening, she had completely forgotten to deliver Wildwing's message. He was probably wondering what was taking so long!

Eadric stood and nodded, signaling the end of their meeting. "Your father and I go way back, I mentored him. Know that you always have an ally in me Mallory." They returned the gesture and left his office.

…..


	7. Chapter 7

I don't own the Mighty Ducks.

A knock at his door during this time of night was unusual. Stepping lightly, he crept closer to the door and spied through the peephole. The face that greeted him wasn't what he had been expecting. Abel Lovell stood outside his door, impatiently waiting. He watched as the frustrated ducks rolled his eyes and knocked again.

Ben stepped back, unchaining the different locks. _"Perhaps he is here about a painting?"_ He thought as he opened the door. "Hello. How can I help you?" Abel rudely shoved the door the rest of the way open and walked in like he owned the place, all the while not saying a word, his guards walking in after him. "Excuse me but I don't care who you are! You don't force your way into my studio even if you are crested."

"Shut up." Abel ordered, surprising Ben who quieted instantly. "Who do you think you are trying to date my fiancé?"

"Your fiancé?"

"Mallory McMallard, you idiot!" Abel turned to stare down his beak at the painter.

"S-she never mentioned she was engaged." Ben searched his memory for any indication that Mallory was engaged. She didn't even wear a ring on her finger, so what this pompous duck was saying couldn't be true.

"Well she is and you would be wise to remember that she is mine." Abel was suddenly in Ben's face.

"You came here to personally tell me that? Don't you think you could have called on the phone?"

Abel smirked. "No, I wanted to see your face." He looked around at the studio. "And where you work. I obviously have nothing to worry about, especially if you spend all your time in a dump like this. I don't understand why she would even want to talk to you. After all you're just some poor painter who got lucky and profited off other's nostalgia." He sneered at some of the paintings in the room.

In the corner, the painting of Mallory was drying, Abel spotted it. Offence clear in his eyes as he turned to Ben. "You dare paint her like she's yours?" Ben wasn't sure what to say or do. If it had been Abel by himself then he might have thrown him out but with his armed guards at the door, Ben didn't want to risk anything. He could only watch as Abel grabbed a can of paint thinner and marched to the canvas.

"NO! Don't!" He went to stop him, the concern for his hard work won out over the concern for his health. The guards grabbed Ben's arms before he could stop the white feathered duck. Abel threw the paint thinner all over the finely rendered painting of Mallory. Ben struggled against the guard but it was too late, he could only watch as her image began to run and melt off the canvas. "You son of a bitch!" Ben yelled, furious. One guard punched him in the stomach forcing him to drop to his knees. His hands going to protect his abdomen, trying not to vomit on the floor.

"I'm glad we had this conversation. Remember it well and don't see her again." He snapped his fingers at his guards, all of which who followed them out except for one.

Raynard stayed a moment, uncomfortable with what he had just witnessed and didn't stop. _"Lizabeth would be ashamed of me if she saw."_ He thought, walking out last and closing the door behind him.

Ben got to his feet, grabbing paper towels to dab the paint thinner off, unfortunately the damage was done. He stepped back and left the towels drop to the floor.

Breathing heavily with an effort to calm his anger he grabbed his paint brush and marched over to a prepared canvas. Dabbing the brush harshly into the paint, he began his next piece.

...

At that same moment, four ducks sat in the living room of the McMallard estate. Mallory, Edmond, Tanya and Duke debated possible solutions. Mallory stared hatefully at the different decorations in the room for a party she was going to be forced to host tomorrow night.

"You're really gonna do it? You're really gonna take the blame and host a party for those two scumbags?" Duke watched Mallory's face.

"If I want to get out of this marriage with Abel, I'll have too. My only chance is talking to Raulin and I can't do that if I'm fighting them Duke. Tomorrow morning I'll call Ciri and tell her that she's won. I'll host the party. No public apology will be made but Abel can announce the engagement."

"You're gonna allow them to announce it?" Tanya eyes widened in horror.

"They'll do it no matter what, this way it seems like I've given up."

"A-after what those two, uh-ch-uh, f-fuckers did to you in your own home?" The blond stood up, outraged. Mallory was a little surprised, Tanya hardly ever cursed.

"Mallory maybe ya should just come back to Earth." Duke leaned his head on his hand. Edmond stiffened at Duke mentioning running away and abandoning responsibilities, he opened his mouth to reprimand the idea but Mallory spoke up before he could argue.

"I can't. My family would be ashamed if they knew I did that. Besides, it's too late for running anyway, they know I'm alive. If I ran now, I could never come back to Puckworld, I would have to stay on Earth… permanently."

Duke shook his head, that might possibly be worse than marrying Raulin and going to Terron. At least she would be around others of her own kind, on Earth, Mallory would truly be alone because everyone else planned on returning to Puckworld. The phone rang in the hall, Edmond excused himself and answered it while the three were left debating what to do.

When Edmond came back in he looked at Mallory who gave him her attention. "What's wrong Edmond?"

"It seems that Ben Whistling was visited last night by Abel Lovell. It wasn't a good one."

Standing up Mallory was instantly worried for Ben. "Is he alright?"

"Yes, he's waiting on the phone to speak with you. What would you like me to tell him?"

"Tell him I'm coming over right now."

"Very good miss." Abel did as he was told.

The redhead faced her friends. "I'm sorry guys. I have to make sure Ben is alright. He got pulled into the middle of something he shouldn't have."

"Who's Ben?" Duke raised an eyebrow. Tanya waved him off, letting him know that she would talk to him about it later.

"Mallory, wait! Before you go, I must tell you something. Wildwing wanted to speak with you. He wants you to come back to the Pond so you can talk." She pulled out the gateway generator that had been left on the floor and let it drop into Mallory's hand. "Please talk to him." Tanya begged her friend.

"I'll see if I can. No promises. In the meantime, you guys need to go back." The redhead looked between the two ducks. "I don't think its very safe for either of you here right now."

"Ya, I don't feel like going to jail, thank you very much." Duke stood up and pulled his generator out.

Tanya sighed but nodded while glancing back at Duke. Shifting her eyes to Mallory, she implored her to listen. "Please do it Mallory. He really wants to talk to you. Maybe now he'll listen."

The militaristic duck sighed. "Fine." Hearing her agreement, Duke and Tanya made their exit.

"Edmond. I'll be back. Stay here where it's safe." She paused walking to the door. "Shit maybe not, they had a key to the house I think."

"I've already had the locks change. The new set is on all your key rings." Edmond was always one step ahead.

"You're the best Edmond." She smiled.

"Be safe Mallory." Edmond watched her grab her keys and walk out the door to the garage. He hoped the young duck didn't run into any trouble or that trouble didn't find her.

...

Arriving at Whistling Studio didn't take long. As she sat with Ben he explained everything that happened then showed her Abel's work.

"It was a painting of you." He stood up and moved next to her, looking at his destroyed art. "It was just a painting of you smiling and he threw paint thinner all over it because he didn't like that I had been seeing you."

"Shit." Mallory narrowed her eyes at Abel's cruelty. Turning to Ben she faced the kind drake she had known back in college. "Ben I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. You didn't do this." He wanted to show this amazing woman what she was getting into with Abel. Ben liked Mallory and it sucked to hear she was getting married but it was obvious that she wasn't into him like he was into her.

"Yeah but he did it because of me. I don't know if it was jealously or what, but no one has the right to treat anybody like that." Her anger was getting the better of her, the way Abel treated others made her sick. "Damnit, I hate him so much!"

"Then why are you marrying him?"

"It's not by choice." She hissed, taking a breath Mallory explained everything with one sentence. "I'm one of the Crested."

Realization lit Ben's face. "Oh. Oh wow." He looked at the floor as if it would give him some sort of answer on how to handle the situation. "I… uh, wow." He sat down in a chair close by. "Mallory if I had known…"

"You would have treated me differently."

He cringed a little, knowing it was true. "Yeah. I certainly wouldn't have asked for your number." He rubbed the back of two fingers over his forehead out of habit when he was worried.

Glancing back at what used to be a beautiful painting, Mallory's beak scrunched in anger. "Would you be willing paint me again?"

Ben watched her for a moment, realizing she wanted to metaphorically spit in Abel's face. He was only too happy to help. "Yes."

"Good. Can you start now?" She looked eager.

Ben smiled. "My schedule is open."

...

Wildwing looked down at his com as it rang. Opening it, he was greeted by Tanya. "I uh, gave her the message."

"And?" He asked eagerly.

"She said she would come talk to you but I don't know when. Some uh ya know, stuff went down while we were there."

"If you mean stuff like stopping Mal from being assaulted and now we're possibly wanted criminals then yeah some stuff went down." Duke spoke up from off screen.

"What?" Wildwing's eyes widened then narrowed after a second. "What happened there?"

Tanya glared off screen. "I-it's a lot to explain."

"Then start explaining. Both of you meet me at Drake One, now." He ordered, closing his com and marching towards the ready room. It was time he got down to the bottom of all this, like why Tanya was being so secretive with Mallory.

Tanya closed her com, then glared over her should at Duke, who seemed unconcerned. "You could have said that better." The drake just shrugged, unconcerned. "Okay, m-mr. smarty-pants, how are we gonna explain this to Wildwing?"

"Simple." Duke started walking towards the ready room. "By telling da truth."

...

The image in the mirror was her but somehow it seemed like a stranger. The mallard sitting there was gorgeous, red hair in a bun and cat eye style makeup. The marks on her wrists were covered by jewelry. Tonight, she had to be the queen of pretend and hide her disgust behind a mask. _"If I don't do this then it would be a wedding later instead of a party now."_

Mallory didn't get to speak with Wildwing yet. With everything that was happening, she never got the chance. _"He can wait."_ She stood up and smoothed out her dress. It was time to start greeting her guests. Abel and Ciri had already arrived and were waiting downstairs for her. _"I can't let them win." I have to do something to stop them. This is worth that."_ She reminded herself as she went down to begin greeting her guests.

...

Wildwing had been shocked by what he learned late last night. All this time she was crested and not only that, a DuCaine. He checked his tie in the mirror and looked at his com. He didn't know when the party started but he would find Mallory pull her aside and speak with her. There had to be a way to help her out of this.

Pulling out his gateway generator, he dialed in the coordinate Tanya gave him, it would leave him in her backyard so he could sneak in without issue. Stepping through, the grand gardens and home that greeted him had his jaw hanging to the floor. He snapped his jaw shut quickly and swallowed. Closing the gateway behind him, the drake walked into the house and joined the party as if he had been there the whole time. No one seemed to notice his sudden appearance. The home was grand outside but even more so inside, the rich colors and warm atmosphere reminded him of Mallory.

Reserving his thoughts on the décor, he searched the party for her. With hair like hers, she was bound to stand out in a crowd. "Everyone gather around." An older drake, spoke loud so everyone could hear him. "There is to be an announcement in the ballroom. Please follow the doors to the right and enjoy the refreshments." Women giggled and man laughed, all chatting excitedly about what it could possibly be while others shared looks of pity. Obviously, some knew what was going on.

As everyone crowded into the ballroom. Wildwing made himself inconspicuous in a corner where he could see everything. They waited for two minutes before two large doors opened at the top of the stair in the front of the room. Everything became quiet as she walked out.

Mallory was radiant. His breathe was stolen from him when he saw her, he wasn't prepared for the sight before him. She was so beautiful. The red silk dress she wore didn't clash at all with her hair, if anything it enhanced it. Two short sleeves hung off the shoulders to wrap around her upper arms. The bust remained tight to hold it up, allowing for it to reveal some cleavage and clung to her tight waist, showing off her hourglass shape. The skirt of the dress flowed down her legs and trailed the ground around her feet. Her hair was up in an elegant bun, curled red strands softly hang down along the back of her neck and one next to her face. Her neck and shoulders were free of jewelry, she didn't need any, the soft skin was seductive and inviting all on its own. Her makeup was natural tones, only enhancing what was already there but her eyelids hand black eyeliner going along the top, giving her cat eyes, a style she had picked up from Earth, it was stunning on her with her naturally long lashes. She had never looked more beautiful to him. At the same time, she had never looked so sad.

Seeing her now, he felt his desire for her rush forward. All thoughts of Ida lay forgotten as he drank in the redhead's loveliness. She took a deep breath and his eyes moved to how her chest rose and fell. The pale peachy skin looked like porcelain in that red dress. There weren't words to describe how much he wanted her in that moment. Seeing the aristocratic drake approaching behind her, he realized he wasn't the only one.

The drake that joined her at the top of the stairs took her hand, he radiated superiority complex. The same old duck from before, spoke again. "It is our pleasure to announce the engagement of Abel Lovell and Mallory McMallard. May they bear the fruit of many children in our time of crisis." Many clapped while others, shook their heads. "Thank you for attending and please enjoy yourselves." Music started playing and guest began to mingle.

...

It was the night of her announcement party.

He was angry and sad, the only thing he could do to work through it was paint.

The brush strokes were angry, you could see it from the indentation his brush made. Mallory told him everything, including her life back on Earth and the drake she was actually in love with. It was all so unfair. She was being forced into a marriage with someone she hated when she had sacrificed so much for Puckworld.

After meeting Abel, Ben instantly despised the guy; the way he acted, the way he walked, he hated him right down to the color of his clothing. Everything about the drake rubbed him wrong but what bothered him the most was how this guy thought he owned Mallory.

There was nothing he could do to help her and the only drake that could help her, the one that she loved, loved another. Knowing that tonight was the night of her engagement announcement made it all worse.

Ben's brush worked faster to complete the painting. Mallory sat on the floor in an elegant cream-colored dress, her legs tucked to the side, head held high, back exposed and partially facing the viewer as she was turned away from Abel, who was in all dark colors. He sat in a chair, staring smugly at the viewer with his legs crossed and one hand lazily touching the sadden female's bare back possessively. Abel's side of the room was dark and distorted while Mallory's side was light and clean. It did nothing to hide the artist's clear opinion on these two.

Hours later the painting was completed and he only felt worse looking at it. Irately throwing his brush across his studio at his lack of ability to help. Ben sat at his desk and covered his eyes with one hand, his body sagging in emotional fatigue as he placed his fingers on his temples. The sting of tears fighting their way to the surface only seemed to give him a headache. Uncovering his wet eyes, he looked at the portrait and focused on Mallory's face, he didn't realize it at the time but it almost looked as if Mallory was crying.

Picking of the phone he cleared his throat and called his agent. "Hey. Yeah, I have another one for you to sell… Yeah… No get it out of here as fast as possible." He hung up. Glaring at the painting which only seemed to cause him more misery. Walking up to the large piece he stared Abel right in the eye. "Fuck you." The image only smiled back at him victoriously.

...

Her eyes scanned the luxurious ballroom. Ducks of wealth and power waltzed around in their finery. She hated these things, always did but no matter how much she tried she couldn't avoid them. "How is my future bride on this night?" Abel Lovell, her soon to be husband stood behind her, his hands gently touching her bare shoulders, rubbing his thumbs over the soft skin there. "You look beautiful." He complemented, his eyes tracing her delicate swan-like neck. In a possessive and very forward move, he moved his hand and traced his fingers over her collar bone, then wrapped them gently around her neck, pulling her back into him. She closed her eyes turning her face away from his but didn't stop him from making his public claim over her.

In the crowd Wildwing watched her, a mixture of anger and jealously. To him Mallory looked so broken, like she was trapped in a cage that couldn't be seen and had given up all hope of escaping. Even though he was with Ida, he didn't like seeing another duck all over her or holding her like she was a possession. The drake pulled her away and into another room, using the skills developed from his years on Earth, he followed without being seen.

"Why are we in here Abel?" She knew why he dragged her in here, she was dreading him trying this.

"Don't play coy Mallory." Abel smiled, closing the door to give them some privacy, allowing Mallory time to move to the window to stare out at the snow-covered grounds. She heard his feet as he walked across the room to once again stand behind her. His hand moving to her waist and slowly exploring her curves.

"We're not married yet." She spat, refusing to give him any attention.

"I don't care. You're mine Mallory. I can do what I want with you and there is nothing anyone can do about it. So, when I say that I want you now." He grabbed the ties on the back of her dress, ripping them open. Mallory gasped feeling her dress loosen. "That means you're going to give me what I want!"

"What do you think you're doing?" Her offended voice echoed through the room as she clutched the front of her dress close to her chest, keeping it from falling.

"This time your friends aren't here to stop me!" He grabbed her sleeve and ripped it off, ruining the dress. She went to move away but he grabbed her upper arms and pulled her back, kissing her shoulders and neck.

"Get off me you creep!" She had had it! Fuck politics! It was time she showed him what was what and kicked his ass! Mallory was about to throw her elbow back into him but he was pulled off her, the sound of a body dropping to the floor could be heard behind her. Turning, Mallory was stunned to see Wildwing standing over an unconscious Abel.

He continued to glare down at the drake on the floor. "Are you alright?"

He was here? She was supposed to go talk to him, why was he here? She composed her emotions quickly. "Yeah... I was about to handle him." She turned away attempting to tie her dress back up.

"Maybe but I stepped in."

"Why are you here?" She kept herself covered.

"Tanya told me what was going on... and who you really are." He stepped up beside her. "Why didn't you tell me? I should have known from the very beginning."

"You would have treated me differently."

"Maybe, maybe not. Didn't really give me the option."

"Whatever. So, Tanya told you who I was. Now you want to be friends suddenly?" She glared over her shoulder at him, her feathers there were ruffled from Abel's harsh handling of her. She ran her fingers through them straightening them out. "Damnit this dress is ruined."

"Shame, you look beautiful in it."

Mallory stiffened hearing those words from his mouth, she turned around to face him. "Don't say that to me. Don't ever say that to me. What? You hear that I'm a DuCaine and suddenly you want to seduce me?" She scoffed.

"You know I'm not like that. I told you what I wanted from you back when I found out you betrayed me."

"I thought Tanya told you everything?" She crossed her arms and walked across the room, opening a secret back door behind a movable book shelf that lead to passages behind the walls, connecting to different rooms.

Wildwing sighed and followed her, closing the door behind him so Abel wouldn't see the passage wide open when he woke up, which wouldn't be for a while because Wildwing hit him hard. Seeing him tearing off Mallory's clothing had infuriated him to the point that he didn't hold back on his punch.

Entering the darkly lit narrow hall, he couldn't find Mallory anywhere. She did it on purpose with the intent to lose him. He was prepared for anything though, pulling out his mask and placing it on his face, he scanned for her and found her on the second level up some stair and three doors down to the right. His wide shoulders brushed to walls as he made his way to her. Opening her door slowly he saw her dress drop to her feet. Staying behind the door, he didn't want to walk in while she was only in her very tiny underwear. He swallowed, feeling a little guilty for see her partially undressed. Peaking again he observed her pulling another dress out of her wardrobe, he could only see her from behind but it was a tantalizing view. Mallory stepped into the dress and slid it up her body, the dark velvet contrasted beautifully with her feathers, making her look soft and smooth. He chose now to walk in. Closing the door behind him, he walked up to her back, moving her hands aside he zipped up the dress, noting the nail marks in her wrists left by this Ciri bitch.

"What do you want? I told Tanya to tell you I would come speak with you."

"Yeah but I didn't want to wait."

Changing the topic, Mallory got right to the point. "So, she told you everything. Did she tell you I had a solution to get out of this?"

He looked confused. "It's not really a solution unless it actually works Mallory." He stepped away, her 'fix' was to marry Raulin but if she did he would never see her again. Wildwing didn't want that. "Besides if you go you'll never see Tanya or the others again. They would be devastated."

"Would you be?" She faced him, wanting to know if he cared.

"Of course. Why do you think I'm here?"

"Did Tanya tell you what the other solution was?"

He sighed. "…Yes."

"And your answer?" Mallory waited, a small hope flickering to life.

"…I don't know." Wildwing looked at the ground, he couldn't answer that. He was still hurt even though he now knew that she didn't sleep with Algren. There was also Ida to think about. He cared for Ida a great deal.

She tried but failed at not showing her disappointment. "Then there's nothing else to say." She smacked her jewelry down on the vanity table, not wanting to wear it anymore tonight.

Not knowing what to say, he pulled the mask off this face. "Maybe you should keep this with you. It is yours after all." He brought it up to so she could take it.

Seeing the Drake DuCaine mask in his hand, she turned away from it. "If I had wanted it back, I would've demanded it already… Keep it." He tucked the mask back into his coat pocket, watching her leave. She moved as if she were walking to a death sentence, her feet unwilling but forced to walk toward an inevitable end.

"Is there really no other way?"

She stopped but didn't turn to him. "Go live your life Wildwing. Go to _her_ , she's probably waiting for you." Saying the words made her feel like she had been the one to kick the figurative chair out from under her, the invisible noose tightening around her neck. With that she walked through the bedroom door and closed it behind her.

...

His eyes scanned the crowd looking for someone who could give him good usable intel. Someone who had a chip on their shoulder towards the husband to be. Someone who knew Abel well and understood the politics of crested. Finally, his eyes landed on a duck off to the side of the room, he held the spark of resentment in his posture towards Abel and others around him. Wildwing noted how his eyes keep going back to one woman the whole night. The duck was pretty and she seemed to notice his eyes on her but she ignored him and in turn the drake would grab another drink. That was his man.

Moving in he grabbed a drink, standing next to the other drake he got down to business. "I take it you know the Lovell's?"

He scoffed and down his champagne. "Yeah but everybody here knows that. So obviously you're new. What do you want?" He was shrewd, Wildwing didn't have a problem with that.

"I want to talk business. Care to join me so we can speak in private?"

"Not really."

"Do you hate the Lovell's?"

"Obviously."

"Then joined me. Now." He ordered, walking towards the back room. The duck raised an eyebrow but shrugged and followed, curiosity getting the better of him, grabbing another drink off a server's tray as he followed. Once they were in a private room, Wildwing locked the doors. He spoke cautiously so no one could listen in on their conversation. "I need to stop this marriage."

The drake raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Mallory is my…" He didn't know what to say but the look on his face said enough.

"Huh. You know I was in your shoes. The woman I love is crested and had to marry another. Just in case I looked at everyway possible to stop the marriage from happening but it turns out he was a good man, so I let her go. She was better off with him then me anyway." Wildwing felt bad for this guy, he briefly wondered how he would feel years down the road if he didn't stop this. Reynard put his drink down and tucked his hands into his jacket. "But Abel, Abel's not a good person. If Lizbeth had been engaged to someone like Abel… well I won't say what I would have done then."

Wildwing, tilted his head. "What's your name?"

"Reynard Kyngenston."

"I've heard your name in the crowds. How do you know Abel so well?"

"I'm basically at his side, always."

"Wait you're friends with him? How can you be friends with someone like that?"

"He's not my friend. I was hired by his mother to watch after him. I'm basically hired to be his friend and protect him." He scoffed and turned away. "Not like I had a choice. It was either do that of live on the streets. My parents died when I was young and only took me in to play with her spoiled child. You know he wasn't so bad when he was a kid but his mother turned him cruel."

"Look, I don't care about his history. I'm trying to find a way to save Mallory from having to marry him. I don't know how to do that. Surely you know something that can help me."

"I can't tell you anything without compromising my job." He looked thoughtful and turned his back to Wildwing, pulling his hand out of his pockets and folding them behind his back. "However, if I'm just ranting and you happened to be near to hear my rant then there is no crime in that." He looked over his shoulder at the large drake.

Wildwing smirked and nodded. "I'm listening."

"Most don't realize that Crested are supposed to follow a code of conduct, something I had hoped to leverage when Lizbeth was engaged. I know Mallory thinks that if Raulin will marry her that she can get out of the marriage but what she and most don't realize, is that an offense needs to be committed to show that the partner is unsuitable. If a suitable replacement can be found and it can be proven that the code of conduct was broken by the current partner, then the marriage can be changed to a more suitable partner. Abel broke that code when he paid Ben Whistling a nasty visit one night, destroyed one of his paintings, you should talk to him. If you look up his name you'll find his studio easily enough."

"Is there no other way besides marrying another crested?"

"No."

Wildwing nodded. "Thanks. You never saw me." With that he walked back into the ballroom and made his exit.

...

The knock had scared him awake. Ben looked at his watch, he hadn't meant to fall asleep at his studio. The loud knock came again, causing the paint splatter drake to stand up. Ben was caution this time. The last late-night knock hadn't turned out so well. Peeking through the peephole he spied an unknown duck, patiently waiting at his door in a very expensive looking suit. "Who are you?" He called out.

The drake looked at the peephole. "My name is Wildwing Flashblade. I came to speak with you because I want to help Mallory McMallard."

Ben's eyes widened. _"The Wildwing Flashblade? Her leader? The one she was in love with?"_ Carefully he opened the door, standing in front of the hero now he realized that this duck was rather intimidating. His wide shoulders and muscular frame, fulling up his doorway. "Come in." His voice was a little shaky. "You'll have to excuse my paranoia. The last time I got a visit this late at night, I was punched in the stomach and one of my painting were destroyed." Wildwing nodded and walked in as Ben closed the door behind him.

"That's actually what I'm here to talk to you about." He glanced around the studio seeing all the paintings hanging around the rooms. "You did these?"

"Yes."

"Is that the one that was destroyed by Abel Lovell?" He pointed to one in a far corner, the old painting of Mallory.

"Yeah that was it." Ben wondered if he should cover up the painting he had finished the night before of Mallory. He wasn't sure how she would feel about her leader seeing her like that but art was art and it was a beautiful painting. Perhaps it would inspire her leader to pull his head out of his ass.

"Abel Lovell was the one that attacked you?" Wildwing walked into the room to get a better look at the damage.

"Yes." Ben watched Wildwing carefully, waiting for him to see it.

It didn't take long. Wildwing turned his head to observe everything around him when his eyes landed on another painting, a much more sensual one. A sight he had only seen once before but not like this. There on the wall, was the most beautiful painting he had ever seen, Mallory lay naked on a bed, her hair and arms hanging slightly over the side while her legs were bent, knees pointing towards the ceiling in a relaxed manner but she stared at the viewer daringly. Almost as if she was taunting them. "You painted her naked." He stated the obvious, sounding out of breath and stepping closer. Looking at the fine lines and definition of her feminine body. This guy had seen Mallory like this? He looked back at the painter, slight hurt showing in his eyes. "Are you two lovers?"

Ben was surprised to see it but tilted his head to study this other male. Mallory seemed to think the world of him, Ben was curious if he lived up to her image. "What if I said yes?" He didn't want to be beaten up, especially by this drake but his reaction would be very telling.

Wildwing swallowed and turned to face him. "I just need to know."

"Would you be angry if I was?"

"… She's her own woman."

"No we're not lovers." Ben smiled and stood beside Wildwing, who seemed to breathe easier. "After she heard what Abel did, she came right over to make sure I was okay." He chuckled. "She did this because she wanted some form of revenge for what he did. Mallory hates him so much."

Wildwing looked at the picture a little longer and nodded, now that he was over his awe of her, the blush touching his cheeks wouldn't go away. Clearing his throat, he turned away from the image that made his heart race. "I'm building a case against Abel Lovell so that I can stop his marriage to Mallory. I've heard bad things and the more I hear the less I like. Mallory is my teammate, I look after my own."

"Bullshit." Ben scoffed, crossing his arms and leaning against a wall.

"Excuse me?" Wildwing looked at Ben.

"She's more than that to you. You're as in love with her as she is in love with you. Just admit it."

"You're mistaken. I have someone in my life."

"Oh really? Does she make you feel the same way Mallory does? Do you react to her the same way that you reacted to a mere picture of Mallory?" Ben jerked his head at the painting to prove a point. "If not then I'd say you're in denial."

He opened his mouth to argue but closed it quickly. No, he had never reacted to Ida that way, he had never seen her and almost fallen to his knees at the sight of her. Wildwing had yearned for Mallory for so long and the small amount of flirting that she directed towards him had given him hope. Hope that she saw through the bars of his plight and yearned for him in return. Then, he saw her with Algren and he was crushed, he thought the worst. When Tanya told him in the hall that Mallory was in love with him, he wanted it to be true so bad but didn't believe it, so he reacted in anger to protect the fragile pieces of his broken heart. He wanted to hide from the truth and had been doing a good job of it until that moment.

"Is she really in love with me?" He asked.

"Obviously. She told me so herself. I wouldn't make this up. It doesn't benefit me in any way to lie."

Wildwing looked back at the painting of Mallory on the bed. "Would you be will to testify to Abel's lack of character and the broken code of conduct."

"Yeah, sure." Ben raised his eyebrow at Wildwing, he had an awfully hard time taking his eyes off her painting for someone who didn't want to marry her. "Are you really going to let her marry someone else?"

Wildwing didn't answer. "I'll be contacting you soon to testify." With that he left. Now he just needed to figure out what he wanted to do. It wasn't right to just walk away from Ida when they had been getting along so well. He needed to see her.

...

Ida was watching tv on her couch when she heard knocking at her door. Getting up she checked who it was before opening it. To her surprise Wildwing was there. "Wildwing?" She opened the door and let him in. He was dressed to the nines, only his tie was loosened and top buttons of his shirt was undone. He looked distraught. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah I just… needed to see you." He took his jacket off and laid it over the back of the couch. "Mind if I stay the night?"

She smirked, her hands going to the buttons of his shirt. "I'd love that." Standing on her tip toes she pressed her beak to his. He kissed her back wanting to feel passion for her but instead he felt empty. She wanted attention tonight and he needed to know that what he felt for Ida was real. Closing his eyes, he wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her close as he walked her to the bedroom.

Laying her down on her bed and taking her clothes off, he hoped he would feel passion at the sight of her but he was numb, then he remembered what Ben said. The picture of Mallory vividly came forth and he felt that passion. Keeping the painting in mind, he tore the rest of his clothes off and joined Ida on the bed.

Waking up that morning after everything he learned last night made him realize that he felt no passion for the woman next to him. She was a great duck, sweet, smart, pretty, but their relationship was lacking the spark that he was looking for. The spark he felt for Mallory. He didn't feel the overwhelming emotions that consumed his very soul, with Ida he was just going through the motions of being in a relationship. Lost in his thoughts he didn't notice that Ida was awake.

She laid there, staring off into nothing. "Where were you last night?"

He looked over at her, knowing what she was talking about but not wanting to answer so he pretended to be confused, though his voice lacked conviction. "What?"

"You weren't making love to me. It was to someone else you were seeing." She sat up and let her natural brown hair down. "Who were you seeing?"

He sighed. "No one."

"You're lying."

Not wanting to deal with it he got up and grabbed his pants, pulling them on. "I have work to do. I'll see you later." Pulling his shirt on he opened the bedroom door and walked out, needing to get away for a while. Wildwing didn't want to seem uncaring but there were too many thoughts going on in his head. He needed to deal with them first before he could deal with Ida. Almost to the front door of her apartment his hand was reaching for the handle when he heard her speak again.

"Who's Mallory?"

He froze in place, his eyes wide. "What?"

"You said her name last night, while we were…" She couldn't finish her sentence.

"I…" He didn't realize he had said her name!

"I think it would be best if you didn't come back." She whispered, a tear escaping her eye.

He felt horrible as he turned to see her tears. "I never meant to hurt you Ida."

"I know. It's why I'm not screaming at you right now." She was dressed in a robe. Taking a seat on the couch in her living room she wrapped her arms around herself. "The past couple days you've been so distant and preoccupied. I realized it was coming to an end."

What could he say to that. "I'm sorry."

"It was fun while it lasted. Goodbye Wildwing." She didn't look at him, just stared out her window.

"Goodbye Ida… For what it's worth, your gonna make someone really happy one day." He left, there wasn't much that he could say after that. Their relationship had run its course.

...


	8. Chapter 8

I don't own Mighty Duck.

Eadric bowed in proper form to Raulin Brocas as he stepped off his flight and approached the elders that were there to greet him. Raulin then executed a proper bow in return.

"Was your flight pleasant Crested Brocas?" Eadric asked. Though honorable crested from both sides should be at negotiation Raulin was the last of the crested in Terron. The 'Honorable' was only reserved for Crested whom had served for thirty years and over.

Rauling had golden feathers with two dark brown strips going over his eyes and down the sides of his neck disappear under his robes. "Very pleasant." The young falcon nodded, keeping a stern face, not wanting to show weakness to the gathered leaders around him.

"If you are ready we have a car…" Eadric trailed off seeing another hawk step off the plane. Joscelyn walked down the steps, elegantly cladded in robes fitting a queen. With her beak so high in the air, Eadric wonder if she would make it down the stairs without tripping. "I didn't realize your sister was coming. Had I known I would have prepared more guarded escorts."

She stepped into the conversation uninvited. "That is fine. I felt that such important diplomatic matters needed my attentions." Insinuating that she believed they were either going to take advantage or couldn't negotiation a proper deal, a backhanded insult at her brother as well. "Here." She shoved the purse into one of the guard's chest, he kept his stoic demeaner despite her rudeness. "You will be my personal guard." Eadric was offended by her lack of etiquette but didn't show it. She may have been doing this on purpose to sabotage the treaty.

Eadric keep his manners and gave Joscelyn a proper bow. "We welcome you as well Crested Brocas." She watched them for a moment, glancing at her brother who sent a small glare her way, prompting her to act and return the gesture. "Please follow me to our personal transport." He led them to the awaiting cars, keeping his thoughts to himself. "This is your car my lady." Eadric gestured to it. The door was opened for her and Joscelyn walked in without giving a thank you as the guard closed the door. The female hawk was known for her terrible temperament and haughty attitude, hence why she hadn't been invited. With Joscelyn here, things may not turn out as he and Mallory hoped.

"Raulin, please follow me you will ride with me. There is something I wish to discuss with you."

…..

Two days later and he was still fighting with himself over what he wanted to do.

Staring out at the revivified city, Wildwing pulled his jacket tighter to keep out the cold. He may have been covered in feathers but that didn't mean he didn't get cold and Puckworld was an average of ten degrees below zero. All the lights twinkling in the city looked like a reflection of the stars in the sky. Steam puffed out from the drake's nostrils with every exhale as snow flakes softly blanketed everything around him. Shaking his head quickly to remove the snow that had collected on his bill, Wildwing walked back into the warmth of the his and Dive's newly rented apartment.

There wasn't much in it yet but they had been slowly buying furniture from Earth and bringing it back with them. While they were well off on Earth from being hockey super stars, they weren't here. Earth's money had no value here since it wouldn't be recognized as a legitimate currency and they didn't want to raise suspicions so they had to make due with the money that they had before the invasion. All banks had digital accounts that kept their money safe, deep underground in large vaults. The saurian's had no idea and never touched it, so the Puckworldian's that survived found that their money had been right where they left it. Money of a deceased family member was given to the surviving next of kin.

Wildwing and Nosedive's parents died in the initial attack so their small inheritance was split between them and with it they rented the current apartment he stood in. It was a nice enough apartment, a three bedroom with stone floors that were heated. On Earth Wildwing noticed that humans seemed to like wood floors, it was common for them but on Puckworld, stone was more common. Ducks used stone in practically everything but wood was rare and in turn only for the rich.

Speaking of the entitled... _"What should I do?"_ He asked himself. Mallory wanted to know if he would marry her and part of him wanted to but another part was still angry. "Knowing she didn't sleep with the guy helps but still the fact that she went behind my back and almost…" He sighed, mentally exhausted from thinking about this none stop since he found out. A shiver crawling up his spine made him realize the door behind him was still open. Closing the sliding door to the large balcony and locking it in place, the drake went to the sofa then fell back into it.

"In the same token, I'm tired of being angry. I miss her friendship and it's too exhausting to stay angry at her." Leaning his head back on the couch he closed his eyes. Trying to think of anything else but he couldn't get the image of her picture out of his head. That image taunted him, he wished he had never seen it. It was making everything more difficult. "When this is over… I'm buying that painting and locking it away."

…..

Mallory sat in the back of the luxurious self-driving car with Edmond beside her. The negotiations were set for today, this was her last hope of getting away from Abel.

"When will you approach him?"

She looked over at Edmond, he searched her face for an answer. "I know that Eadric planned to speak with Raulin before the council meeting. I'm hoping to catch him before or during a recess."

The older drake sighed and sat back in his seat. He didn't know what he could say that would comfort her. Either way something was being taken away from her. Edmond didn't want Mallory to move across the ocean and never see her again, she was like a daughter to him but he didn't want Abel near her either. In his opinion that drake was the lowest of low. Especially after how Abel and Ciri came into their home and assaulted Mallory, then made _her_ apologize for it. Thinking about it now still made his blood boil.

Both were lost in their own thoughts as the car pulled up to the ornately decorated building, the car's side door opening to let her out. "I'll let you know when I'm done." She smiled at Edmond, who couldn't find it in him to smile back. Mallory studied his face for a moment, Edmond looked so sad, she was too but what choice did she have. "Wish me luck?" She tried to get a response out of him.

Mallory used to ask him this whenever she was nervous as a little girl. Edmond would always give the same replay whenever she asked this. "Every time I see a shooting star." Smiling sadly, the redhead hit the button to close the door, pulling her cloak tighter to herself. A slight wind had kicked up and was throwing small flakes of snow all around her. She watched as the car drove off, taking Edmond back home. He didn't need to go with her but he wanted to. She wasn't going to say no to him. Tanya and Duke were at her estate waiting for news on if she could convince Raulin.

Turning around and observing the House of the Crested Council, she wrapped her arms around herself and walked towards the front doors. This would be her first time ever in the Crested Council Chambers, she'd be lying if she didn't admit to being a little nervous.

Armed guards were waiting outside, checking anyone that approached. Showing her identification, they let her pass. Upon entering, her cloak was taken for her as more guards checked her person for weapons. When none were found they let her through. Her robes were the traditional style with the family house colors on them. Her house colors where red and gold. There was a small amount of makeup on her face and her hair was up in a bun upon Edmond's insistence.

Walking in she found Eadric standing in the middle of the room speaking quietly with who could only be Raulin. The room was loud with the echo of ducks talking. The meeting had not started yet so everyone was chatting. Her eyes scanned for Abel and found him off to the side wearing his blue and black house colors as a few council members spoke with him. Seeing that he didn't notice her yet she walked in trying to blend in, a difficult job in these colors.

Mallory returned her attention to observing Raulin, he was handsome. Seeing her Eadric waved her over for an introduction, nodding she made her way towards him when a hand wrapped around her arm, stopping her progress. "Where do you think you are going? Shouldn't you be sitting next to me?" Abel pointed towards his seat behind him where her seat had been moved next to his.

"After the stunt you pulled at my home, I don't want to even look at you. Now take your hand off me or you'll see what its like to face me when your mommy hasn't got your back." She whispered venomously.

"Watch your tone Mallory. One would think you are displeased that I am your future husband."

"Gee what gave it away."

"One way or another we're going to be married and you're going to learn to be respectful." He smirked bringing his hand up to run his finger along the side of her beak and down her neck.

Mallory took a step back and sneered. "Go fuck yourself."

Abel wasn't fazed by her attitude. "You'll do that for me." She clenched her fists and turned away from him. Abel only smiled at her retreating back as she walked to Eadric. He was enjoying his victory over her and would enjoy it again later when she realized her plan wouldn't work. His mother was the best at these political games, she had already figured out what Mallory and Eadric planned. Too bad for them they didn't realize why it wouldn't work. He laughed and went back to his seat.

Eadric smiled at Mallory as she approached, he had seen the interaction between her and Abel. Something was wrong, Abel was far too smug but he didn't let his concern show on his face. "Crested Raulin Brocas please meet Crested Mallory McMallard."

They both gave each other a proper bow. "A pleasure to meet you Crested McMallard. Tales of your family's deeds are well known in Terron." Raulin took her hand and kissed it.

"The pleasure is all mine." She turned to Eadric. "Honorable Crested Eadric, would you mind if I stole Raulin for a moment?"

"Of course." He gave Raulin a look and walked away. Raulin understood and offered his arm in a gentlemanly fashion to Mallory, who took it.

Together they walked out of the chamber and almost made it to the heavy doors before a female hawk stepped into their path. Her shiny golden hair went passed her shoulders and curled in large ringlets towards the bottom. The golden feathers matched her hair and unlike her brother she didn't had two brown strips.

"Who is this?" She stared down her curved beak at Mallory like she was a disease, looking at how the redhead was holding her brother's arm.

"Joscelyn, this is Crested Mallory McMallard."

"Hn." Was her only response. Joscelyn was unimpressed.

Keeping her mouth shut as to not reprimand this bitch on her behavior and possibly insult Raulin, Mallory only gave a small bow which was not returned. "What terrible colors. It clashes horribly with your hair and your awfully scrawny, can you not afford to-"

"Enough." Raulin cut her off. "You have been rude enough. Go take a seat, dear sister."

Mallory was literally biting her tongue to keep from snapping at this golden-haired bimbo. "Do not order me around dear brother." She practically hissed at him, Raulin wasn't fazed. "I'll do what I want when I want. I have lost interest with both of you anyway." She moved passed them into the chambers as Mallory and Raulin continued their walk.

"I apologize for her behavior. She has always been difficult."

"It's fine. Nothing I haven't dealt with before." She vividly remembered the look Ciri gave her in her own home. Joscelyn reminded her of a brattier version of Ciri. "Raulin has Eadric spoken with you about the possibility of using marriage to bind the treaty."

"He did."

"And your thoughts?" Mallory didn't want to beat around the bush, she wanted a direct answer.

Raulin stopped and turned to Mallory, he studied her face a moment then closed his eyes and sighed. "I'm afraid that won't work."

"Why?"

"There is another… _He_ would not apricate me having a wife."

She wasn't expecting that but kept her composer even with the knowledge that she wasn't going to be able to get away from Abel. "I didn't realize. I hope you're not offended by us assuming." She was currently mentally kicking herself. _"I should have done more research."_

"I am not offended. I know it doesn't show but I am. I cannot help the way I am, nor am I ashamed of it."

"And you shouldn't be." Terron was not as open or accepting in their culture. His sister certainly didn't seem to respect him or think he was capable of leading, perhaps this was the reason why.

"My sister would disagree. She believes it to be un-masculine and a form of weakness. Like this I will not bare children to continue the family bloodline."

Mallory scuffed. "I don't mean to be rude but you are a far superior leader to your sister, she has a lot to learn. You handle yourself well, she doesn't. Being gay doesn't have anything to do with strength, your character determines your strength."

Raulin smiled and looked up at the sky. "I think so too." He liked Mallory. It was a shame he couldn't help her with Abel Lovell, that duck was horrible. "I'm sorry I cannot help you."

"It's not your responsibility but thank you."

They went back in together, Mallory gave Raulin another small bow and went to her seat. He did the same and the negotiations started.

It was a difficult and long process but they were finally breaking through. Joscelyn being a part of it had without a doubt slowed everything to a crawl, she was nitpicking even the smallest of details. Mallory could have sworn that she saw the vicious hawk smirk a couple of times at the council's attempt to remain polite.

Finally, the meeting was over. Eadric stood in the middle of the room. "We will pick up where we left off tomorrow. Thank you everyone for your attention to these important matters of state." Everyone stood, bowed and left in an organized fashion as usual. Hearing that it was over, Mallory hit the button to call her car.

Abel smirked at her. "Are you done with your ridiculous plans to try and get out of this marriage?"

She only glared over at him. "Sometimes I think I'd rather dead then marry you."

"Soon, you'll think differently. I promise." He could only think about the money coming his way.

"No, I promise you that I won't." She was quick to leave and tried to put as much distance between them as possible. Grabbing her cloak, she threw it on and walked outside to the pickup point. The car was ten minutes away and it was cold but she would rather wait outside then in the warmth next to Abel.

Snow crunching under a pair of feet behind her, letting her know someone was approaching. "You look cold. Would you like me to warm you?" Abel's hands went to her shoulders, pulling her back into his chest.

"No." She attempted to push off him but he kept a strong grip.

Annoyed that she still wasn't giving in he went with a more underhanded tactic. "What ever happened to those friends of yours that assaulted me and my mother? You know I could still have them thrown into prison." He turned her around to face him none to gently. The aristocratic looking drake, smirked down at her, bringing his face closer to hers.

"I already did what you and your mother wanted, you slim. You both agreed to leave them out of it." Mallory glared at up a him, not liking how close his face was getting.

"She agreed, I didn't. Keep that in mind when trying to break off this engagement again."

"I publicly accepted the blame for what happened. Anything else you have to say about it would be considered hearsay." She pushed at his chest.

"Yes, but I could always claim that this was a separate attack. All I have to do is pay someone to say they witnessed it and both those ducks go away for a very long time."

Her feathers bristled at his underhandedness. "Don't you _ever_ threaten my friends!"

"Don't make me. Now be a good girl and tell the elders that you wish to proceed with the wedding by the end of the week. If you do this then your friends will be fine."

"You're a pig!" She smacked his hands away, her temper finally flaring. "All you think about is yourself and money. I despise you!" Her breathing was labored at her attempts to control her anger.

"I don't really care." Abel shrugged and looked up to see her car arriving. "Looks like your ride is here. Remember what we talked about." He left her be, walking to his own awaiting car.

The self-driving vehicle came to a stop in front of her, identify her as the passenger, its doors automatically opened, allowing her to crawl in and get comfortable. Closing the door, the car drove away on a direct route back to her home where Tanya, Duke and Edmond were waiting for news. Calling on her com, she waited for Tanya to pick up, it didn't take long before a blond duck with purple glasses filled the screen.

"Well? H-how did it go?"

Mallory looked beside herself. "The wedding to Abel Lovell… will proceed as planned."

…..

Tanya hung up her com. The situation was as she feared. Now she had to relay the news to Duke and Edmond. Walking back into the living room where the two ducks anxiously awaited news, they looked up at her seeing her enter. "Well Sweetheart? What's the verdict?"

"Abel won." She took a seat across from them, at a loss on what to do.

Neither Duke nor Edmond said anything. Both looked down at their hands, they had known this was a long shot.

"T-the wedding will be at the- ah ya know- end of the week."

"That's in two days!" Duke sat up straighter.

"Ya." Tanya muttered.

"Forget dis." Duke grabbed his dimensional gateway and put in the coordinates for the Pond back on Earth.

"Ah w-wait? Where are you going?" Tanya looked at Duke alarmed.

"I'm gonna find Wildwing. He's the only one who can solve dis. I'm gonna knock some sense into him."

The blond tech stood up. "I'll go with ya."

"No, stay here. Mal's gonna need you when she gets back and I'll need updates on what happening." Duke opened the portal. "I'll let you know when I find Wildwing." Tanya nodded as she watched him walk through and the close the portal behind him.

…..

Duke came out right next to Drake One. Opening his com, he attempted to call Wildwing but the signal didn't go through. "That's weird." He ran to the room Wing and Dive shared, knocking on the door a couple of times but no one answered. "Screw it." He let himself in and found Nosedive asleep with a comic book on his face. "Nosedive!"

The young drake jumped awake, the comic dropping off his face to the ground. "Wow! Wha-da - What is it?" His eyes were large as he looked at Duke.

"Nosedive where's Wildwing?"

"Oh man. I don't know."

"Nosedive I need you to think? This is an emergency."

"Oh crap." He groaned, still trying to wake up, running a hand through his hair. "If he's not here then he's probably at our new apartment on Puckworld."

"And where would that be?"

"Oh crap I can't remember the address right now." Duke was getting frustrated, Dive was moving too slow for him.

"Damnit Dive wake up!" He yelled, surprising the younger duck. "If you can't remember the address then you are taking me there! Let's go!" Nosedive jumped up with a growl, irritated that he was being ordered around and he didn't even know what was going on. "We need to find Grin. Is he here?"

"Yeah man. He's in his room. Calm down." Nosedive didn't understand what was happening. It seemed that he had been very out of the loop. "Duke man, what's going on that your so roiled up?"

"I'll explain as we run."

…..

Wildwing knocked three times at the door, waiting for an answer. He was a little nervous about doing this but it wasn't like he was going to let _that_ go in someone else's house. The door finally opened and Ben tilted his head at the duck. He opened the door and moved aside, allowing Wildwing to walk in. "Is it time to go make a case against Abel Lovell." He closed the door and locked it giving them privacy.

"Not yet but soon, so be ready."

"I'll be here if you need me. So, if you're not here for that then what are you here for?"

Wildwing blushed a little but cleared his throat. "The painting."

Ben was a little surprised but not completely. The poor guy had been quite enamored with the painting the last time he was here. "I see." Then again it wasn't everyday you saw the woman you pine for like that.

"How much for it?"

"That depends."

"On what?"

"Your intentions."

Wildwing raise an eyebrow. "My intentions?"

"Yes. Everything you are doing is for Mallory, isn't it? The only way out of this is if you marry her. Are you going to?"

"Yes." He didn't hesitate to answer.

"Do you love her?"

Of course he did, why else would he be doing all of this. "Yes."

"Then consider it a gift." Ben walked to her dried painting, carefully wrapping it and placing it in a canvas box.

"I couldn't do that." Wildwing said. "I'm more than happy to pay for it."

"I know but I want you to have this. She deserves to be in safer hands." He looked over his shoulder at Wildwing, seeing that the drake understood his double meaning. Wildwing nodded as Ben handed him the wrapped painting. "Take care of her, she is special."

"I will."

…..

Nosedive scratched his head as he sat on the couch. "Well he'll be back by tonight, at least he should be."

Duke growled as Grin waited by the door, his large arms crossed over his chest. "Perhaps he has gone on a walk to meditate on the matter."

"My brother, meditate?... Get your brain pan checked girly girl." Nosedive gave Grin a disbelieving look. Grin just shrugged. He leaned back looking at the ceiling, looking thoughtful. "Why didn't Mal tell us about this?"

"Who knows Dive." Duke sighed and sat back. They had attempted to call Wildwing's com but he had to choose today to leave it behind. It was getting late now and Tanya had called to see if they had any luck finding Wildwing, she was disappointed to hear they hadn't located him yet.

They waited an hour before the sound of footsteps coming down the hall caught their attention. "Is that him?" They waited until the door was unlocked. Wildwing walked in carrying a large square case when he turned and saw Dive, Duke, and Grin waiting in his living room.

"What's everyone doing here?"

"Bro! Finally! We've got trouble man!" Nosedive jumped up.

"Wow wait a minute. What kind of trouble?" Wildwing placed the painting down and walked deeper into the apartment. Grin looked at the case curiously, wondering what was in it. Seeing Grin's curiosity he put it behind a door, wanting to keep other's eyes from it.

"It's about Mal Wing." Duke stood up and crossed his arms, he had a speech prepared. "I know you're angry at her but get over it, she needs your help."

"I know. I don't intend to let that happen."

Duke was about to go on with his speech but it went out the window when he realized, Wildwing agreed. "Wait? You don't?"

"Of course not. I have a plan to get her out of this."

"Would that plan be marrying her?" Duke asked.

"Yeah it's a part of it."

"Well put it into action now!" Duke urged.

Wildwing raised an eyebrow at Duke's urgency. "What's going on? What's happened?"

"Bro the wedding is gonna happen in two days!" Nosedive dramatically shouted.

"What?! I thought I had more time!"

"We'll ya don'. Abel is trying to blackmail Mal into marriage right away." Duke supplied.

"Son of a bitch." Wildwing growled. "I need to schedule a meeting with the council then bring Ben and someone else with me but that will be close to impossible since they are all booked up until four months in advance! We would need the approval of an elder to get in last minute."

Duke perked up. "I think I know just the guy."

…..

The next day, the council had collected to finish the negotiations with Terron. It was one o'clock when Eadric stood and walked to the center of the room to speak. "We will be calling a recess shortly but before we do, an important matter has been brought to my attention. It seems there is an issue and an objection to the mating and marriage of Mallory McMallard and Abel Lovell." Many started to whisper to each other wondering who this could be.

Abel stood up suddenly, fists clenched at his sides. "What is this?!" He shouted, quieting everyone. "Who dares to object and challenge me?!"

Mallory too wanted to know, she watched Eadric, wondering why he hadn't spoken with her about this. Eadric held his hand up, telling Abel that silence was needed. "The claim was submitted that Abel Lovell is an unsuitable candidate for marriage due to broken code of conduct. This claim was submitted by Wildwing Flashblade, a very interesting young man and applicant for Crested status." Mallory's jaw dropped. "He will present his case now. Would Wildwing Flashblade, Mallory McMallard and Abel Lovell, please come to the floor." Eadric called them down.

Mallory and Abel did so, standing in the center of the room. The large doors to the side of the council chambers opened, many leaned forward in their seats to see the challenger. In walked a tall and board drake, gasps came from all over the room at the sight of the legendary Mask of Drake DuCaine on his face. He stood beside Mallory, who watched him as if she wasn't sure it was him.

"Please Wildwing, start when you are ready." Eadric gave him the floor while Abel glared at the tall drake.

"The night before Mallory McMallard's announcement party Abel Lovell broke the code of conduct by visiting Ben Whistling's studio. Abel Lovell destroyed a painting of Mallory McMallard that had been made by Ben Whistling while he had his guard restrain and punch Ben in the stomach as Abel threw paint thinner all over his work."

"Where is the proof?" Abel demanded.

"Ben Whistling and his painting are here as evidence."

"Please come forth." Eadric waved him in. Ben entered carrying the destroyed painting, giving the council a small bow. He presented the evidence to them. Many murmured, shaking their heads and others nodding.

"This is not substantial evidence! For all we know both of you could have planned this together to make it look like I did this!"

Eadric looked to Wildwing. "This is true. You would need another witness Mr. Flashblade." Abel glared at Wildwing and Ben.

"And I have another. A drake that was there when this all happened, Reynard Kyngenston." Abel visibly paled. The heavy doors opened again and Reynard walked in, taking a stand next to Ben.

"Reynard? I must say I am surprised to see you. I thought Abel has been your best friend since you were young."

"Yes, but I have to speak the truth. I would be ashamed of myself if I didn't." He looked up to the right where Lizbeth sat and made eye contact with her. "Others would be ashamed of me too." She smiled proudly at him. He broke eye contact with her to face Eadric. "It is true. All of it, I was there to witness everything."

Eadric looked to the rest of the council. "Very well. Does the council agree that Abel Lovell has broken the code of conduct? Those who believe so raise your hands." Everyone in the room raised their hand. Abel sneered at all of them. "Well that is decided. Now to the next order of business. Wildwing Flashblade, you wish your family name to be inaugurated into a new line of crested." Eadric watched Wildwing carefully. "What is your claim to becoming one of the crested?" He already knew and agreed that Wildwing should be but the others need to agree as well.

"I'm the leader of the team of ducks responsible for taking out Dragaunus for good." Wildwing stood proudly before the council. "I am the owner and wearer of the Drake DuCaine Mask."

One of the elders stood wishing to make his point known, everyone became silent. Eadric nodded to him, giving him the okay to speak. "That is a priceless family heirloom that belongs to Ms. McMallard. You have no right to keep it." Others made noises of agreement, nodding their heads or arguing with each other.

"Mallory McMallard handed this mask over to me and named me her leader. It was our team that chased Dragaunus from this planet and eliminated him, just like Drake DuCaine did, except this time I finished the job." Gasps were heard around the room. If this was true then the Flashblade name did indeed meet the qualifications to be a new line of crested.

"Ms. McMallard is this true?" Elder Eadric asked Mallory calmly. A hushed silence fell over the room as they awaited her answer. Since Mallory was a crested, her confirmation would be all the council needed as proof.

Wildwing turned and waited for her to confirm it. In awe of what he just did, she slowly nodded. Looking Eadric in the eye she confirmed it. "It's true." The chambers exploded into loud discussion, a reaction surprising the ducks standing in the middle of the room. They had never seen the council erupt into madness. Some ducks yelling and arguing their side of the case as to why Wildwing shouldn't be allowed crested status while others demanded he be inaugurated into the crested immediately. Eadric just rolled his eyes, this sometimes happened in heated debates, it wasn't something he wasn't used to.

"You can't be serious!" Abel yelled in outrage. "He's a commoner! He couldn't possibly be allowed to be named crested! What value could he possibly bring?" Abel attempted to keep Mallory and her name from being snatched from him. "We were already supposed to be married!" He pointed a finger at her now. "She is _mine_ by right and by law!" Wildwing ground his teeth but kept quiet and Mallory glared at Abel, visibly showing her distaste. Ducks all over continued to argue over the issue.

"Silence in the chambers!" Eadric ordered, quieting everyone. "It seems there is much to discuss." He stood and nodded to Mallory and Wildwing. "Ms. McMallard, Mr. Flashblade. Please allow us some time to deliberate. We will call on you once we have come to a decision. Mr. Lovell, I must also ask you to wait outside as well."

Abel fumed but consented, marching out of the hall followed by Mallory and Wildwing. Once they had left and the doors to the council chamber closed Abel was quick to turn his anger on the two ducks behind him. "If you think this is a way out of our marriage then you're a bigger fool then I thought. My family holds great sway in those chambers and they will side with me. You're only delaying the inevitable." He angrily pointed his finger at Mallory.

"You're such an ass." Mallory sneered. "The way you talk to others and treat them is disgusting! You're the fool for thinking I'd ever marry you!"

The drake was in her face in an instant. "Shut your mouth before I put it to better use!" Abel was suddenly hoisted in the air by his neck. Mallory back away, surprised to see Abel lifted off the ground so quickly. Wildwing's large gloved hand was tightly wrapped around Abel's throat, he venomously glared up at the drake, holding him away from Mallory.

"Never talk to her like that again." Wildwing spoke in a calm but deadly voice, holding the duck easily in the air with one arm. Abel choked and clawed at Wildwing's hand. "Mallory is not property. She's the most amazing woman I have ever met and when you're in front of me you will treat her like it." He dropped Abel, who fell to his knees coughing, his eyes watering from choking. "And when you're not in front of me, you will never go near her again."

"When I'm done with you, you'll wish you never did that!" He held this tender throat and pointed at Mallory. "She is mine and you're never going to see her again!" Wildwing was grinding his teeth and clenching his fists, he was a breath away from slamming his fist into this duck's face repeatedly. "The only thing you will be looking at is a jail cell! Guards!" He called but no one came. "Guards!" He called again and this time down the hall, opposite of the chambers, the doors opened. Abel smirked, as Mallory and Wildwing faced the doors ready for a fight but dropped their stance when they saw the duck that walked in. Abel's smirked dropped at the sight of the one-eyed drake that assaulted him before.

Duke smirked walking down the hall whistling a tune. "Guards where are you idiots!" Abel yelled. Grin walked in behind Duke, dragging seven unconscious guards behind him while Tanya and Nosedive dragged in two and placed them against the wall.

"Ya, they're not coming." Duke smirked.

"Guys! What are you doing here? How did all of you get in?" Mallory stepped forward.

"That would be me miss." Edmond appeared, throwing two guards down. Another guard came charging out but Edmond side stepped him and delivered a chop to the back of his neck, knocking him out.

"Edmond?" Mallory's jaw dropped.

"Alright! The Ed-ster takes another out!" Nosedive cheered.

Mallory turned to Wildwing, seeing that he had brought the team to the rescue. "Why are you doing this for me?"

"Why do you think I did that? Because I don't want to see you used like a, like a…" He seemed to have a hard time finding the words.

"Like a broodmare?" She finished for him.

"Yes!"

"Do you even understand what you're getting yourself into?"

"Of course, I do." He turned away from her so she couldn't see the blush on his cheeks. "I'm not stupid."

"So, you understand what you're proposing to them is letting you be the one that breeds more DuCaines' with me?"

"Yes, I understand that." He spoke, annoyed she was questioning his comprehension on the situation.

"Why would you do that for me? I thought you hated me? What happened to the pretty brunette? Don't you have to get back to her?" She turned away from him.

Wildwing finally looked back at her. "It didn't work out."

Mallory scuffed. "So that's the reason you're is helping me." She didn't turn to look back at him even though she wanted to. She didn't want to ask why it didn't work out. Mallory didn't want to give the impression she cared, after all she was still a little angry at him.

"Don't you want to know why?"

"It's not any of my business." She kept her back to him, her voice neutral.

"It was because I can't seem to get you off my brain." He glared at the redhead's back.

Hearing this she finally looked over her should at him, not sure whether to believe him or not. His hand reached out and caressed her cheek, much to his delight, Mallory didn't pull away from the first form of affection he had ever shown her. Stepping closer he kept his hand on her soft feathered cheek. "Mallory I-" The heavy doors opened to reveal Eadric and Raulin walking out to them.

"Wildwing Flashblade. As of this moment…" Eadric paused, considering the eyes in the room on him. Abel, smirked believing the council would side with him. "You are officially the newest line of Crested. Congratulations." Eadric and Raulin gave Wildwing a small bow which he returned. "Since the code of conduct was broken and Abel is unsuitable, I request that I be mated and married to Mallory McMallard."

"Already approved."

"What!" Abel shouted outraged at Eadric's answer.

"So I am officially Crested?" Wildwing questioned.

"Yes, all privileges of the crested are yours now as well." Eadric nodded, raising an eyebrow.

"Good." Turning quickly, Wildwing punched Abel right in the face, knocking the drake out with one hit. Mallory's jaw dropped while their teammates cheered behind them.

Eadric just smirked, looking at Abel, sprawled across the floor. "Huh? That was incredibly satisfying… Well done but that still leaves us with the issue of Abel needing to be married."

This time Raulin spoke up. "I believe I have a solution."

…..

Flower petals and snow floated in the air, falling softly around the newly mated pair as cheers and shouts erupted all around them. It had been a beautiful wedding.

Abel stood with a black eye beside his new mate in front of the assembly, a look of displeasure on his face. The look of displeasure matched that of his horrible bride, Joscelyn. Mallory clapped at the official completion of the ceremony. In her mind, they made the perfect couple.

Raulin stood off to the side clapping, he couldn't have been happier with the turn out of the negotiations. It was a good thing his sister came along after all. The look on her face was priceless, he would always fondly remember this day.

Everyone cheered as the two passed, walking back to their car which would promptly take them to the awaiting plane. Both were on a one-way ticket to the other side of the planet, Terron. Raulin waved goodbye to the crowd and followed shortly after in another car. He would go back a hero to his people, with resources and a new government in place.

"Shame he couldn't be here for your wedding." Eadric spoke to both Mallory and Wildwing.

"Fuck that! I wanted him gone." She didn't hold back her feelings about Abel. Eadric burst out laughing much to Mallory's surprise. Wildwing smirked, holding his fiancé close while Edmond rolled his eyes at her language but smile none the less.

Edmond looked over at the other ducks that would be living with them in their new home. Turns out the whole team needed a home and Mallory said it didn't feel like home without them, so the estate would be full of life again. He was glad. All those empty rooms would finally be used up and they still had some to spare for guests and children. Mallory's family would be very proud.

Edmonds eyes rounded in surprise when Nosedive jumped on his brothers back, attempting to give him a noogie, Wildwing quickly reversed the hold and put Nosedive in a headlock, giving him a noogie in return. The younger brother's feet kicked up everywhere to try and get away, making the crowd around them disburse. All the while Mallory was laughing while Duke was hitting on a random woman in the crowd. Tanya and Grin just smiled and watched events unfold. Edmond briefly wondered if they were always this rambunctious. Nosedive finally free from his brother's grip, ran and hid behind Grin. "Keep him away from me!"

"You started it. I finished it." Wildwing smirked. Mallory shook her head, giving him a kiss on the cheek distracting him. He was quick to turn his attention to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and holding her close. Both nuzzled each other affectionately causing Nosedive to make gagging sounds.

With this group of ducks, the estate would never be boring.

Fin.


End file.
